Born and raised in Minneapolis, Prince signed a record deal with Warner Bros. Records at the age of 19, soon releasing the albums For You (1978) and Prince (1979). He went on to achieve critical success with the influential albums Dirty Mind (1980), Controversy (1981), and 1999 (1982). His sixth album, Purple Rain (1984), was recorded with his new backing band the Revolution, and was also the soundtrack to the film of the same name in which he starred. Purple Rain garnered continued success for Prince and was a major commercial achievement, spending six consecutive months atop the Billboard 200 chart. The soundtrack also won Prince the Academy Award for Best Original Song Score. After disbanding the Revolution, Prince released the album Sign o' the Times (1987), widely hailed by critics as the greatest work of his career. In the midst of a contractual dispute with Warner Bros. in 1993, he changed his stage name to the unpronounceable symbol logo. Hollow circle above downward arrow crossed with a curlicued horn-shaped symbol and then a short bar (known to fans as the "Love Symbol") and was often referred to as The Artist Formerly Known as Prince (or TAFKAP) or simply The Artist.
After signing with Arista Records in 1998, Prince reverted to his original name in 2000. Over the next decade, six of his albums entered the U.S. top 10 charts. In April 2016, at the age of 57, Prince died after accidentally overdosing on fentanyl at his Paisley Park home and recording studio in Chanhassen, Minnesota. He was a prolific musician who released 39 albums during his life, with a vast array of unreleased material left in a custom-built bank vault underneath his home after his death, including fully completed albums and over 50 finished music videos. He also released songs under multiple pseudonyms during his life, as well as writing songs that were made popular after being covered by other musicians, most notably "Nothing Compares 2 U" by Sinéad O'Connor and "Manic Monday" by the Bangles. Estimates of the complete number of songs written by Prince range anywhere from 500 to well over 1,000. Released posthumously, his demo albums Piano and a Microphone 1983 (2018) and Originals (2019) both received critical acclaim.
Prince sold over 100 million records worldwide, ranking him among the best-selling music artists of all time. His awards included the Grammy President's Merit Award, the American Music Awards for Achievement and of Merit, the Billboard Icon Award, an Academy Award, and a Golden Globe Award. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2004, the UK Music Hall of Fame in 2006, and the Rhythm and Blues Music Hall of Fame in 2016, and was inducted twice into the Black Music & Entertainment Walk of Fame in 2022.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_(musician)
Studio albums
For You (1978)
Prince (1979)
Dirty Mind (1980)
Controversy (1981)
1999 (1982)
Purple Rain (1984)
Around the World in a Day (1985)
Parade (1986)
Sign o' the Times (1987)
Lovesexy (1988)
Batman (1989)
Graffiti Bridge (1990)
Diamonds and Pearls (1991)
Love Symbol (1992)
Come (1994)
The Black Album (1994)
The Gold Experience (1995)
Chaos and Disorder (1996)
Emancipation (1996)
Crystal Ball (1998)
The Truth (1998)
The Vault: Old Friends 4 Sale (1999)
Rave Un2 the Joy Fantastic (1999)
The Rainbow Children (2001)
One Nite Alone... (2002)
Xpectation (2003)
N·E·W·S (2003)
The Chocolate Invasion (2004)
The Slaughterhouse (2004)
Musicology (2004)
3121 (2006)
Planet Earth (2007)
Lotusflow3r (2009)
MPLSound (2009)
20Ten (2010)
Plectrumelectrum (2014)
Art Official Age (2014)
HITnRUN Phase One (2015)
HITnRUN Phase Two (2015)
Posthumous releases:
Piano and a Microphone 1983 (2018)
Originals (2019)
Welcome 2 America (2021)
Prince also released two albums credited to Madhouse, three albums credited to the New Power Generation, and one credited to the N.P.G. Orchestra:
Madhouse:
8 (1987)
16 (1987)
The New Power Generation:
Goldnigga (1993)
Exodus (1995)
Newpower Soul (1998)
The N.P.G. Orchestra:
Kamasutra (1997)
For Serbian singer Princ, please use Princ.
Vicki Waiting
Prince Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Phone book)
The phone rings, it's Vicki callin'
She wants me to come to the crib
See, conversation's better than bein' lonely
So I try my best to ad-lib
I told the joke about the woman
He replied, "I didn't know I was playin' in a cathedral"
Vicki didn't laugh at all
This is where she wants to be
I am what she wants to see
I've never known a love so sweet
Still, I keep Vicki waiting
Alright
All is well in Gotham City
The sound of terror is all you hear
Sometimes a pistol takes the place of her body
Sometimes her body's here
But you see, when crime is your only love
All that matter is the present, the here and now
People, people, whatever floats this joker's boat
Is whatever this joker will bang
(This is where she wants to be)
I, I am what she wants to see
I've never known a love so sweet
Still, I keep Vicki waitin'
Oh yeah
Wait on, uh
Ooh, whoo
Talk of children still frightens me (ah, whoo)
Is my character enough to be (yeah, whoo)
One that deserves a copy made? (ever, ever)
This I one day, hope to see
Until then she's held at bay
By my animal-like persistence
Or maybe she's just too proud to say
That fate (fate) brought us together
And this is where she wants to stay
(This is where she wants to be)
I, I am what she wants to see
I've never known a love so sweet
Still, I keep Vicki waitin'
Oh
(This is where she wants to be, yeah)
I am what she wants to see (ah, yeah-yeah, yeah)
I've never known, (never known) a love so sweet
Still, I keep Vicki waitin'
All is well in Gotham town
(This is where she wants to be)
I am what she wants to see
I've never known a love so sweet
Still, I keep Vicki
Still, I keep Vicki
Still, I keep Vicki waiting (waiting)
uh-hu, uh-hu
Still, I keep Vicki
Still, I keep Vicki waiting
(This is where she wants to be)
The lyrics to Prince's song "Vicki Waiting" narrate the story of a man, who is being called by his lover Vicki to come over to her place. He tries to entertain her with jokes and puns, but she doesn't find them funny. The song's opening lines, "I'm of the mind to make some mookie ha, ha, ha, phone book" seem tagged on to make it more difficult for people to understand the meaning behind these lyrics. The succeeding lines reveal that, despite their different lifestyles, the singer and Vicki are in love, and that's where she wants to be.
The second verse references Gotham City, alluding to the comics for which the singer wrote the music. The singer mentions that Vicki's presence could constantly be threatened by Gotham City's chaos. He also confesses that he is afraid of having children that would be patterned after his character. He hopes that one day, he would be deserving of having a mini-version of him. But until then, Vicki is held back by his possessiveness or perhaps her pride altogether, which prevents her from admitting that this is where she wants to stay.
Overall, "Vicki Waiting" is an intense and profound love song. It depicts the singer's insecurity about the future while highlighting his possessive side, as he keeps Vicki waiting for him to make a move.
Line by Line Meaning
I'm of the, I'm of the mind to make some mookie ha, ha, ha
I'm in the mood to have some fun and make jokes.
The phone rings, it's Vicki callin'
Prince receives a call from Vicki.
She wants me to come to the crib
Vicki wants Prince to visit her at her place.
See, conversation's better than bein' lonely
Prince believes that talking to someone is better than being alone.
So I try my best to ad-lib
Prince tries to be spontaneous and make jokes.
I told the joke about the woman
Prince tells a joke about a woman and her lover.
Who asked her lover "Why is your organ so small?"
The woman asks her lover why he has a small organ.
He replied, "I didn't know I was playin' in a cathedral"
The lover makes a joke about thinking he was in a small space instead of a large one.
Vicki didn't laugh at all
Vicki didn't find Prince's joke funny.
This is where she wants to be
Vicki wants to be with Prince at his location or where he is singing.
I am what she wants to see
Prince believes that Vicki desires to see him.
I've never known a love so sweet
Prince loves Vicki and thinks their love is sweet.
Still, I keep Vicki waiting
Prince is keeping Vicki waiting for him.
All is well in Gotham City
Prince is using a Batman reference to describe the state of his world.
The sound of terror is all you hear
Gotham City is known for being terrorized, so all you can hear is screams and chaos.
Sometimes a pistol takes the place of her body
Violence and crime sometimes prevent Prince from being with Vicki.
Sometimes her body's here
Other times, Vicki is with Prince.
But you see, when crime is your only love
Prince is saying that being involved in crime is equivalent to being in love.
All that matter is the present, the here and now
In the criminal world, all that matters is the present moment.
People, people, whatever floats this joker's boat
Prince is referencing the Joker from Batman, and saying that he does whatever he pleases.
Is whatever this joker will bang
Prince is saying that he will do whatever he wants, regardless of the impact on others.
Talk of children still frightens me (ah, whoo)
Prince is scared of the idea of having children.
Is my character enough to be (yeah, whoo)
Prince is questioning if he is a good enough person to have a child.
One that deserves a copy made? (ever, ever)
Prince is questioning if he would be a good role model or parent.
This I one day, hope to see
Prince dreams of having a child one day.
Until then she's held at bay
Until then, Vicki is prevented from having a child with Prince.
By my animal-like persistence
Prince is very persistent in his desires and actions, similar to an animal.
Or maybe she's just too proud to say
Prince thinks it's possible that Vicki doesn't want children but is too afraid to tell him.
That fate (fate) brought us together
Prince believes that he and Vicki are meant to be together.
And this is where she wants to stay
Vicki wants to be with Prince at his location or where he is singing.
Still, I keep Vicki waiting
Prince is still keeping Vicki waiting for him.
Uh-hu, uh-hu
Prince affirms his thoughts.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Prince Rogers Nelson
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind