Prince: They Got $50mil, Ain’t Wrote N’an Lyric. When Will WE Be Paid?

Posted On : December 15, 2014

prince6

We came across this ’99 video in our Old School stash and just HAD to post it because we’re not accustomed to seeing Prince talk like this. He was publicly airing out how jacked up the music industry is and how he and other artists, especially African American artists, get exploited.

You gotta check out the video below, and in case you’re reading this at work, you can read everything that Prince said in this video on the next page.

[pull_quote_center]Jimi Hendrix made a lot of music…it should stay in his family. Miles Davis made a lot of music…it should stay in his family. I DONE MADE A LOT OF MUSIC…it should stay in MY family. When will WE get paid?[/pull_quote_center]

This further explains why he stopped using his name in the late 90’s and wrote slave across his face when he felt like a slave to his record label – Warner Brothers. Although Prince has recently broke his decades long bout of being an independent artist and resigned with Warner earlier this year for a very lucrative deal, he still says he will NEVER be trapped inside of another “slave-like” contract again.

In my humble opinion, there’s a difference between fair practice and outright highway robbery (figuratively speaking). Yes, record labels should be compensated for their marketing, product packaging, and promotional efforts – that’s a given. BUT the ARTISTS who actually create the product that allow these label execs to send their kids to Ivy League schools, should be VERY WELL compensated for actually creating the art as well. Besides, when everyone in the situation is happy, everyone can continue to break bread together for a very long time. So we give Prince much respect for fighting the system and ultimately getting making them give him the respect he deserves.

NEXT PAGE

About I Love Old School Music

We salute the incredible people and beautiful memories of that "old school". We’re not saying that every artist and every facet of the soul era was perfect, but the artists’ contributions to soul music and the old school memories of that particular time are PRICELESS.