If you know anything about the film, Purple Rain, then you’re bound to remember the characters with even the most smallest of roles in that iconic 1984 classic. Singer/actress, Jill Jones, is widely known for her role as the ‘nightclub waitress,’ who was sweet on “The Kid” (Prince’s character) in the movie. There are several other factors about her that many people may not know. Some of those include the fact that she was dating Prince back then (as were a few other female singers too), and that she has an unexpected deep family connection to the infamous Gordy fam.’

Jill exposed many previously unknown tidbits of shocking info about her past in a prior interview with Huffington Post.

Jill Jones On Why Prince Made Her Pass For White

In case y’all hadn’t noticed, even though Jill is oftentimes mistaken for a 100% Caucasian women, she’s actually African American and Italian. During the time that Jill was a part of Prince’s band, it was her White side, that her then-boyfriend, Prince, used to his band’s advantage when it came to uppin’ their spins on channels with predominantly White audiences, according to Jill.

When explaining how grateful she was that Prince gave a “voice” to biracial women like herself back then, Jill detailed his larger plan at connecting with all audiences…by tricking non-Black folks to an extent:

Jill Jones- “[Prince] really gave us a voice because I went through my life trying to figure out how do I fit in? Prince kind of helped. It appealed to putting blonde hair on me made the ratio on stage to appeal to the MTV generation. Black folks always knew I was Black. It’s just…we know (laughs).”

Despite It All… Jill Says Prince Was Pro-Black All Day, Everyday

Even though Prince did what he felt he had to do in to get his music videos seen and heard by the masses back in the day, Jill says do NOT get it twisted, the brotha was about as pro-Black as they come in real life:

Huffington Post- Though his image was provocative, he proudly embraced being Black.

Jill Jones- Having a Black man kissing a White woman on stage was provocative because it addressed what was happening in the culture. He came back to it [his Black roots]. He loved performing and he loved our community. He had the capacity to really set the world on fire with his words. […] He had a public side that he wanted to show but once he left the white record system, he was free to be, “This is who I really am.” He was a brotha. I don’t care what people wanna say. No, he was not Sammy lunchmeat! I’m sitting here and looking at everyone revising his history and somebody has to get on it because they’re just leaving out the chunks that matter!

Jill Jones & The Gordy Family Are Connected On A Deep Level

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Jill Jones is Berry Gordy’s step-niece and the stepdaughter to Berry’s Motown Records executive brother, Fuller Gordy. Her mother was a well-known manager in the industry, who worked with many known artists alongside husband, Fuller. It was during a tour that her mom and stepdad were both involved, that then teenaged Jill met Prince:

“I don’t meet people and say something provocative. He [Prince] stirred my being, he unnerved me, he rattled me. I had not met anyone like him and I was really defiant with him out of the reactionary response. I was walking up the stairs coming from the sound check, he was coming down and we looked at each other eye-to-eye and kind of stopped. He said, ‘Hi.’ I went, ‘Hi. So what, the stage isn’t big enough for all of us or something really sh——.”

Years later, the two started dating and Prince had written the song, “She’s Always In My Hair,” about Jill Jones for his 1985 album, “Around the World In A Day.” However, Jill says that by the time Prince’s movie, Grafitti Bridge was released, she soon learned that, so was she- at least from Prince’s romantic life, that is:

“When you got an album completed, you were done as a romantic interest. Like, you were still there but he was putting you in a place where you weren’t going to just be a happy power couple. You were given your wings to go do your thing. His ability to let go of your how fast or slow, that’s because he was juggling, like we say, the inspiration for all these women. Some guys send you flowers, Prince would just give you an album (laughs).”

I tell ya,’ the things we learn when we do a lil’ digging.

Source

The post Purple Rain Actress On Why Ex Prince ‘Had Her Pass For White’ & Her Connection To Berry Gordy appeared first on I Love Old School Music.

The character of “Billy,” the Minneapolis club owner of ‘The Ave.’ nightclub (which is an actual Minneapolis nightclub by the way), brought a ton of flavor to Prince’s cult-classic “Purple Rain” film. He was the cat who yelled at Prince in the movie and repeatedly referred to him as “The kid.” “Billy’s” real name is Billy Sparks, but just based on his natural swag alone, he was able to hold his own in a movie full of Hollywood newcomers, but still heavy-hitters nonetheless: Prince, Morris Day, Jerome Benton, Clarence Williams II, The Revolution band, Apollonia 6, just to name a few.

Who Is “Billy” In Real Life?

Billy Sparks was a well-known record and concert promoter for Prince and he still is for many other high profiled artists. He’s also a decades-long close friend of Prince. He prefers to be behind the scenes of the entertainment world, but when it came time to film “Purple Rain,” he made that one exception for his his good friend, Prince, who wanted him in the movie.

Shortly after Prince’s passing in 2016, Billy briefly stepped back into the spotlight to share cool memories about his friend Prince, in two separate interviews with radio personalities, Tom Joyner and E.J. Greig. Peep some of the little known facts he revealed below…

How They Met

Billy tells radio host, E.J. Greig: “I met him [Prince] back in 1980. Some friends of ours…were managing Earth, Wind & Fire. They were offered an [opportunity] to manage Prince, but they didn’t know that much about him. […] He had a new album coming out that he’d been working on and they said ‘Well we just got the cassette, can you take it in and listen to it?’ And I listened to it. They called me the next morning and said ‘Well what did you think?’ [I said] ‘You should have signed this kid up YESTERDAY. A week after that, I was in L.A. and they called me and said ‘Hey, the kid is coming out, I want you to meet him and I met him and that was in ’80…

Their Hilarious Shade-Filled 1st Meeting

Via EJG: Billy- “[During that first meeting] We had a few laughs and Prince said, ‘I kinda like you, you’re a fat guy but you have a lotta energy, you’re the fattest energy guy I’ve ever seen in my life’ LOL. And I said ‘Well I’m [like] Jackie Gleason here baby, I’m rockin’ and rollin, LOL.’ That started then and then it just blossomed into a pretty cool relationship for many, many years.”

Billy Called Prince “The Kid” In Real Life

Billy also revealed that, just like in the movie, “Purple Rain,” he called Prince “the kid” in real life.

Billy- “Yeah [‘the kid’ is] kind of what we referred to him as, but in the movie he wanted to keep it that way and I thought it kept a kind of mystique, since nobody ever called him Prince so…that was kind of cool.” -via EJG

Why Prince Fired Him

Billy discussed how Prince went through a LOT of employees throughout his years, but he lasted many years, before his friend had to fire him.

Via Tom Joyner Morning Show: Billy Sparks- “I was there…but me and Prince [eventually] parted ways, he got a lil’ frustrated with me, told me I couldn’t bust those records like I used to, LOL. And I was like ‘Prince, c’mom on man.’ But you know, he wanted to get play on regular stations and I tried to explain it to him like ‘Boss, let me explain something to you…this stuff today is different, it’s all about call-out research, you know. Guys like you and Michael [Jackson]…are two great talents but radio….is not like the old days, man.’ So I said, ‘Prince do you listen to radio [and Prince said] *mocking Prince’s voice* ‘I don’t listen to radio!’ LOL…’Okay well, how you gon’ battle if you don’t listen to the plan of action? Nah, but we parted cool.”

They remained friends afterwards and Billy held no grudges against his The Purple One for doing what he had to do for his career.

What Billy Does Now

At the time of his prior interview, Billy was still in the concert promotion business, working with many known artists, including singers, Fantasia and Anthony Hamilton.

The post Remember The Purple Rain Club Owner? Many Surprised By Who He Was To Prince In Real Life appeared first on I Love Old School Music.

ILOSM family, we’ve lost another great. Clarence Williams III, the phenomenal actor best known for his roles in the hit series, The Mod Squad, and the films, Purple Rain and Sugar Hill, passed away on June 6, 2021. He was 81 years young.

Williams’ manager, Allan Mindel, revealed the movie star died in his Los Angeles, CA home. A cause of death has not yet been released.

Throughout his decades-long career, Clarence Williams III has left lasting impressions on fans and his fellow entertainers alike. However, the superstar was simply grateful to be recognized, once expressing his gratitude for the love in a 1999 interview:

Via NPR: “All most people know about me is the two hours they’ve invested in a movie theater or the time spent in front of their TV,” he said in an interview in 1999. “There’s so much entertainment out there right now, it’s difficult to break through and become part of the national consciousness. It’s nice to be recognized, and I have no problem with it at all.”

He began his acting career on Broadway, and his other memorable work on film includes, Tales from the Hood, Deep Cover,  The General’s Daughter, Lee Daniels’ The Butler and an uncredited role in American Gangster. While his television appearances include roles Miami Vice, Hill Street Blues,  Everybody Hates Chris and more.

Clarence Williams III Was Married To “The Matrix’ Actress

She and Williams met on the set of the television show Mod Squad back in the 60s and tied the knot in 1967. The two were actually married more than 15 years before they divorced in 1984. However, even after their divorce, the two remained really close friends. In fact, Williams III was the one to publicly announce his ex-wife’s death on Sept. 29, 2001. May they both rest in peace and power after a remarkable job well done here on earth.

The post R.I.P. – “Mod Squad” And “Purple Rain” Actor, Clarence Williams, Passes Away appeared first on I Love Old School Music.

Clarence Williams III has been in the game for many many years. As most of us know, Williams was cast in a number of major moves and some of his best work were in films like Purple Rain, I’m Gonna Git You Sucka, Sugar Hill, Blue Hill Avenue, and American Gangster, Williams has left his mark on the film industry. But, most fans probably have no clue he married this amazing Matrix actress…

“The Matrix” actress he was married to…

Williams III married Gloria Foster, who was best known for her performance in the box office hit The Matrix. In the film, which has grossed more than $463.5 million since its 1999 release, Foster portrayed the vital role of the “Oracle,” a mysterious older lady with the power to guide humans in The Matrix. The pivotal role serves as yet another accomplishment on Foster’s filmography. The Matrix film franchise is now considered one of the most successful in film history, with all of the films grossing more than $1,632,989,142, collectively.

At the time of her death she was in the middle of filming The Matrix Reloaded, which ultimately released in 2003. Some of Gloria’s previously filmed scenes were still included in the 2003 movie though. At her funeral, many iconic actors attended to pay homage to Gloria Foster- an actor they highly respected for her acting abilities. Author, Martin B. Duberman, commended Foster for her work in the stage play, In White America. “Gloria didn’t act the part,” said Duberman, “she embodied it. At the end of the scene each night, there were tears streaming down her face, her body was trembling, but her dignity was intact.”

One of Gloria Foster’s closest friends is the iconic Cicely Tyson…

The iconic actress, Cicely Tyson, was one of Gloria Foster’s good friends. She also spoke at Foster’s funeral, doting on her “unceasing dedication to her profession and her talent.” She also shared intimate details about their friendship revealing they often indulged in three hour-long conversations regularly.

Other celebs who spoke at Foster’s funeral included actresses Mary Alice (who ended up playing the same “Oracle” role in The Matrix Revolution after Foster passed away), the iconic Ruby Dee; and actors, Al Freeman (played Elijah Muhammad in “Malcolm X”), Geoffrey Holder (from “Boomerang” and “Annie” movies), and others.

Clarence Williams III and Gloria Foster are the epitome of true love in Hollywood. The bond they shared, even decades after their divorce, is proof of that.

The post This Legendary “Purple Rain” Actor Married An Incredible “Matrix” Movie Actress appeared first on I Love Old School Music.

She was victorious in her fight to find peace in the end, but not without going through the heartaches she described in the following excerpts from her past interview with soul singer, Rhonda Nicole (for Soul Train)…

JILL JONES GREW TO HATE THE ENTERTAINMENT WORLD

“It had become very easy to focus on the sad aspects of my life—the death of my mother, a divorce. I spent the 15 years after that album [her 2001 album, “Two”] not really being comfortable in my own skin, not accepting the parting of my mother, not being involved with a label and having to do everything myself. I became kind of angry about it. […] I felt music was one of the love affairs of my life…something that always left me hanging. It was like a really bad lover!

I did miss it [music], but I did cut it off. I wanted to be angry about it, to always have some negative thing to say. I was scared, I was terrified! I didn’t want to be rejected, I didn’t want everybody to know that I was a failure. […] There was so much humiliation. It was like, ‘What am I going to do, and how am I going to do this?'”

JONES ODDLY DEVELOPED NEW PERSONA TO RUN FROM MUSIC INDUSTRY

Jill said she so desperately wanted to run away from her music industry past, that she created a totally different identity, oftentimes lying about who she was:

“I had to re-build…I bar-tended. I remember a member of the Wu-Tang Clan came into the bar and he said, ‘You’re Jill Jones!’ And I was like, ‘No, I’m not.’ And I was speaking with a French accent. There was this shame…I had just disconnected and disassociated and pulled myself away. I cut out everybody.”

But things began to shift in her life…

JILL JONES OVERCAME HER GRIEF

Jill Jones says that she’s now at a point in her life where she has overcome her sense of failure, and is now very accepting of who she is:

“I had reached a place in my life where I was comfortable with who I am. During this time, when you let go of all the other concepts of what someone thinks of you or how you need to be, I found peace with who I was. And I decided I am who I want to be at this point. I got into Kundalini yoga a few years ago and started a serious meditation practice because I wanted to change some things. And then I realized there were some things that I’m not going to change—these are soul experiences that I just have to learn, and they’re not going to change until I finally accept what they are.”

Jill Jones has released her last album, “I Am,” was released in 2016, and is available on iTunes.

The post “Purple Rain” Actress Hit Rock Bottom After The Film And She Explained How appeared first on I Love Old School Music.

The character of “Billy,” the Minneapolis club owner of ‘The Ave.’ nightclub (which is an actual Minneapolis nightclub by the way), brought a ton of flavor to Prince’s cult-classic “Purple Rain” film. He was the cat who yelled at Prince in the movie and repeatedly referred to him as “The kid.” “Billy’s” real name is Billy Sparks, but just based on his natural swag alone, he was able to hold his own in a movie full of Hollywood newcomers, but still heavy-hitters nonetheless: Prince, Morris Day, Jerome Benton, Clarence Williams II, The Revolution band, Apollonia 6, just to name a few.

Who Is “Billy” In Real Life?

Billy Sparks was a well known record and concert promoter for Prince and he still is for many other high profiled artists. He’s also a decades-long close friend of Prince. He prefers to be behind the scenes of the entertainment world, but when it came time to film “Purple Rain,” he made that one exception for his his good friend, Prince, who wanted him in the movie.

Shortly after Prince’s heartbreaking passing in 2016, Billy briefly stepped back into the spotlight to share cool memories about his friend Prince, in two separate interviews with radio personalities, Tom Joyner and E.J. Greig. Peep some of the little known facts he revealed below…

How They Met

Billy tells radio host, E.J. Greig: “I met him [Prince] back in 1980. Some friends of ours…were managing Earth, Wind & Fire. They were offered an [opportunity] to manage Prince, but they didn’t know that much about him. […] He had a new album coming out that he’d been working on and they said ‘Well we just got the cassette, can you take it in and listen to it?’ And I listened to it. They called me the next morning and said ‘Well what did you think?’ [I said] ‘You should have signed this kid up YESTERDAY. A week after that, I was in L.A. and they called me and said ‘Hey, the kid is coming out, I want you to meet him and I met him and that was in ’80…

Their Hilarious Shade-Filled 1st Meeting

Via EJG: Billy- “[During that first meeting] We had a few laughs and Prince said, ‘I kinda like you, you’re a fat guy but you have a lotta energy, you’re the fattest energy guy I’ve ever seen in my life’ LOL. And I said ‘Well I’m [like] Jackie Gleason here baby, I’m rockin’ and rollin, LOL.’ That started then and then it just blossomed into a pretty cool relationship for many, many years.”

Billy Called Prince “The Kid” In Real Life

 

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Billy also revealed that, just like in the movie, “Purple Rain,” he called Prince “the kid” in real life.

Billy- “Yeah [‘the kid’ is] kind of what we referred to him as, but in the movie he wanted to keep it that way and I thought it kept a kind of mystique, since nobody ever called him Prince so…that was kind of cool.” -via EJG

Why Prince Fired Him

Billy discussed how Prince went through a LOT of employees throughout his years, but he lasted many years, before his friend had to fire him.

Via Tom Joyner Morning Show: Billy Sparks- “I was there…but me and Prince [eventually] parted ways, he got a lil’ frustrated with me, told me I couldn’t bust those records like I used to, LOL. And I was like ‘Prince, c’mom on man.’ But you know, he wanted to get play on regular stations and I tried to explain it to him like ‘Boss, let me explain something to you…this stuff today is different, it’s all about call-out research, you know. Guys like you and Michael [Jackson]…are two great talents but radio….is not like the old days, man.’ So I said, ‘Prince do you listen to radio [and Prince said] *mocking Prince’s voice* ‘I don’t listen to radio!’ LOL…’Okay well, how you gon’ battle if you don’t listen to the plan of action? Nah, but we parted cool.”

They remained friends afterwards and Billy held no grudges against his The Purple One for doing what he had to do for his career.

What Billy Does Now

At the time of that 2016 interview, Billy was still in the concert promotion business, working with many known artists, including singers, Fantasia and Anthony Hamilton.

The post “Purple Rain” Actor Details Who He Really Was To Prince In Real Life appeared first on I Love Old School Music.

When Apollonia was introduced to the world as the lead singer of Vanity 6 -turned- Apollonia 6 in Purple Rain, she became an 1980’s legend forever.

It was 34 years ago since she made her film debut as Prince’s girlfriend and protege’ in the film. It’s also been 35 years since she first met Vanity 6 singer, Susan Moonsie. Their friendship began abruptly, just as Apollonia’s hiring was due to Prince suddenly casting her to replace his then newly ex-girlfriend – the late Denise “Vanity” Matthews – for the lead role.

The Past Love Triangle +1

Little did the world know at that time though, Prince found himself in a situation where he actually ended up working with three women he dated on one project at the same damn time. Vanity helped him write the film, then left after a heated argument. Susan was his longest lasting love out of all of them, because they were high school sweethearts and were reportedly still together during the filming of Purple Rain. Apollonia eventually became Prince’s homie-lover-friend around 1983 or so.

Well, that was then and this is now and Apollonia has maintained a close friendship with the rarely seen Vanity 6 singer, Susan. So much so, that she recently took to social media to show gratitude to her homegirl.

Apollonia Shows Love To Her Former Group Member

apollonia_kotero: Susan Moonsie is EVERYTHING to me! When I stepped into the Prince World , it was this sweet Angel that literally took my hand and pointed out the land mines for me. Throughout the years, she is the only one who has been a real Lady to me consistent and has “always” been here for me and for Prince.

Susan is an honest woman. The biggest heart. She is my Dream. She is my sister. She has also shown Prince nothing but respect to this day. When Denise Vanity Matthews transitioned, Susan and I along with our beautiful sisters Jill Jones and BrendaB were there for Prince. Susan then came to LA to spend time with me. We consoled one another during these difficult times.

I admire this lady. I love this woman with all my heart. Thank you Baby Jesus for my sweet little Susan☔️ Forever grateful for you Susan Moonsie. Thank you for all that you are. #classact #lady #truth #sister #love #thisgirl6 #A6 #beautiful beyond words Did I tell you how much I love this lady ? ☔️ She gets her own chapter in my MemoirsOne last ting! Susan used to put salt in my coffee ☕️ in the a.m. on the road in LA, Minny, wherever. I fell for it every time.”

Susan Moonsie’s Rocky Relationship With High School Sweetheart, Prince

Even though Prince and Susan were in love long before the fame, they remained in love afterwards. The only reported problem was that Prince was a young man, who soon transformed from a struggling Minneapolis artist, into a mega-superstar the ladies were throwing their drawls at every chance they got.

That didn’t stop him from loving Susan Moonsie though, whom he initially wanted to play the lead role in Purple Rain and be the lead singer of Vanity 6. However, Susan was said to have refused the lead role and that’s when Prince found Vanity.

Around 1984, it was reported that Susan had just about all she could take with her relationship with Prince, due to his player ways. By then, he had already dated Vanity, Apollonia, and reportedly singer, Susan Melvoin- sister of his band member, Wendy- right up under Susan Moonsie’s nose.

As y’all can see from Apollonia’s above tribute, no amount of cheating, stopped Susan from having a great heart and developing a long lasting love for her friend, Apollonia, and her late ex, Prince.

The post Apollonia Pays Touching Tribute To Rarely Seen Vanity 6 Singer & Friend, Susan Moonsie appeared first on I Love Old School Music.

Jill Jones is widely known as the actress whose character as a waitress in “Purple Rain” was sweet on “The kid” (Prince’s character) in the movie. But what some may not know is that Jones is a singer who was once signed to Prince’s Paisley Park Records.

After gaining notoriety in  “Purple Rain,” releasing two albums, and working with a plethora of hit makers in the music game, ranging from Prince; to the soul band, Chic; Me’shell Ndegeocello; to Rick James; Teena Marie and more, Jones’ career kind of hit rock bottom and she ended up going through a great deal of pain, embarrassment, and disappointed in the music industry, as well as in her personal life. She was victorious in her fight to find peace in the end, but not without going through the heartaches she described in the excerpts you’re about to see from Jones’ interview with soul singer, Rhonda Nicole (for Soul Train)

JILL JONES GREW TO HATE THE ENTERTAINMENT WORLD

After years of trying to have a successful music career, after the death of her beloved Mother, and after releasing her lightly promoted second album titled, “Two,” Jill Jones (pictured above) revealed that she hated the music game like a “bad lover”:

‘It had become very easy to focus on the sad aspects of my life—the death of my mother, a divorce. I spent the 15 years after that album [her 2001 album, “Two”] not really being comfortable in my own skin, not accepting the parting of my mother, not being involved with a label and having to do everything myself. I became kind of angry about it. […] I felt music was one of the love affairs of my life…something that always left me hanging. It was like a really bad lover!

I did miss it [music], but I did cut it off. I wanted to be angry about it, to always have some negative thing to say. I was scared, I was terrified! I didn’t want to be rejected, I didn’t want everybody to know that I was a failure. […] There was so much humiliation. It was like, “What am I going to do, and how am I going to do this?”’

That’s when she decided to make the bold move to do this>>>

SHE TOOK ON NEW PERSONA TO RUN FROM MUSIC INDUSTRY

Jill revealed that she so desperately wanted to run away from her music industry past that she created a totally different identity and erased all traces of her life as an entertainer. She oftentimes lied about who she was when asked:

“I had to re-build…I bar-tended. I remember a member of the Wu-Tang Clan came into the bar and he said, ‘You’re Jill Jones!’ And I was like, ‘No, I’m not.’ And I was speaking with a French accent. There was this shame…I had just disconnected and disassociated and pulled myself away. I cut out everybody.”

But things began to shift in her life>>>

JILL JONES OVERCOMES HER GRIEF, RELEASES NEW ALBUM

Jill Jones says that she’s now at a point in her life where she has overcome her sense of failure and is now very accepting of who she is and it I must say that it’s always a beautiful thing to see this level of empowerment:

“I had reached a place in my life where I was comfortable with who I am. During this time, when you let go of all the other concepts of what someone thinks of you or how you need to be, I found peace with who I was. And I decided I am who I want to be at this point. I got into Kundalini yoga a few years ago and started a serious meditation practice because I wanted to change some things. And then I realized there were some things that I’m not going to change—these are soul experiences that I just have to learn, and they’re not going to change until I finally accept what they are.”

Jill Jones has released her newest album, “I Am,” which is available on iTunes.

The post “Purple Rain” Actress Disclosed The Hardships & Odd Life She Led After Success appeared first on I Love Old School Music.

On Their Secret Marriage & How The Fell In Love

Wendy in Lisa finally revealed that they were secretly married for 20 years! They’ve known each other since they were 2 years old and were crazy in love with each other by the age of 17.

Wendy: We were married and I was her biggest fan. Everything that she played broke my heart and still does and I wanna own it and covet it and make it mine.
Lisa: [Laughs at that] Yeah, we’re chained together. We’re shackled. No, I love Wendy. We’ve known each other our entire lives practically. Once she was finally hired into Prince’s band, it was like a dream for me. I had fallen in love with Wendy, my childhood friend, and suddenly we were looking at each other differently, but I had to leave on the road all the time. It was always just torture. Finally Prince met Wendy and there was some trouble with the other guitar player [Dez Dickerson], and providence moved in such a way that Wendy ended up on the road with us.

Prince’s Influence On Their Relationship

Wendy: I think Prince saw us as the couple that we were and used that relationship to add more mystery to him. And I think Lisa and I were willing to go there because at that time we felt mysterious. 

Wendy and Lisa say Prince didn’t necessarily want to hide their lesbian relationship, he just wanted to guide them, make it a part of the band’s persona and protect it:

Lisa: I’ll give you an example. We had a photo shoot for the “Purple Rain” poster. We were all in our different positions and he at one point walked over to me and Wendy and lifted my arm up and put my hand around Wendy’s waist and said “There.” And that is the poster. That’s how precise he was about how he wanted the image of the band to be. He wanted it to be way more obvious. We weren’t just the girls in the band. … We were the gay girls in the band. It was very calculated.
Wendy: And how did it make us feel? I felt slightly protected by it, which is really ironic. There was so much mystery around him and he never had to answer to anybody or anything and I was so young and dumb that I thought I could adopt that philosophy.

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Why They Didn’t Want To Come Out Back Then

Wendy: We’ve never done a “Let’s come out” interview. We’ve never been in the closet, but…I didn’t want to be a lesbian musician. I felt really uncomfortable with that role. I was already fighting, being a guitar player in a man’s world and to have that on top of it — Lisa and I were so very married at the time, it just didn’t seem like something I could handle.

The Whispers About Their Sexuality In The Industry

Lisa: With Prince and the Revolution, I think that it was just taken for granted that we were supposed to be the gay reps in the band. [Laughs] The blacks, the whites, the gays. And people would say, “Gee, do you think this lesbian thing is going to work for them?” [Everyone laughs]

On whether or not the record label staff suspected they were lesbians
Lisa:…After we would leave the record company offices, I remember one of our managers mentioning that the art department people would comment on the way Wendy and I would talk to each other. Like I would say, “Yes, dear,” and they would be all like whisper-whisper after we would leave the room. “They’re gay, aren’t they? They’re like an old married couple.” At that point, we had already been a couple for 10 years. It was very normal for us and very precious.

Are They Still Together?

Lisa: No, we’re not together. We were together for many, many years. We made it about 20 years together and now we are not together, but we are still together. I mean, we still share what we … we like to think we can still share the best of ourselves with each other, so, you know, she’ll always be just the most important person.

Wow…that “Computer Blue” excerpt Wendy and Lisa did on Prince and The Revolution’s album makes so much more sense now.

The post Were Wendy & Lisa More Than Just Friends? See What They Surprisingly Shared appeared first on I Love Old School Music.

Who Is “Billy” In Real Life?

Billy Sparks was a well known record and concert promoter for Prince and he still is for many other high profiled artists. He’s also a decades-long close friend of Prince. He prefers to be behind the scenes of the entertainment world, but when it came time to film “Purple Rain,” he made that one exception for his his good friend, Prince, who wanted him in the movie.

Shortly after Prince’s passing in 2016, Billy briefly stepped back into the spotlight to share cool memories about his friend Prince, in two separate interviews with radio personalities, Tom Joyner and E.J. Greig. Peep some of the little known facts he revealed below…

How They Met

Billy tells radio host, E.J. Greig: “I met him [Prince] back in 1980. Some friends of ours…were managing Earth, Wind & Fire. They were offered an [opportunity] to manage Prince, but they didn’t know that much about him. […] He had a new album coming out that he’d been working on and they said ‘Well we just got the cassette, can you take it in and listen to it?’ And I listened to it. They called me the next morning and said ‘Well what did you think?’ [I said] ‘You should have signed this kid up YESTERDAY. A week after that, I was in L.A. and they called me and said ‘Hey, the kid is coming out, I want you to meet him and I met him and that was in ’80…

Their Hilarious Shade-Filled 1st Meeting

Via EJG: Billy- “[During that first meeting] We had a few laughs and Prince said, ‘I kinda like you, you’re a fat guy but you have a lotta energy, you’re the fattest energy guy I’ve ever seen in my life’ LOL. And I said ‘Well I’m [like] Jackie Gleason here baby, I’m rockin’ and rollin, LOL.’ That started then and then it just blossomed into a pretty cool relationship for many, many years.”

Billy Called Prince “The Kid” In Real Life

Billy also revealed that, just like in the movie, “Purple Rain,” he called Prince “the kid” in real life.

Billy- “Yeah [‘the kid’ is] kind of what we referred to him as, but in the movie he wanted to keep it that way and I thought it kept a kind of mystique, since nobody ever called him Prince so…that was kind of cool.” -via EJG

Why Prince Fired Him

Billy discussed how Prince went through a LOT of employees throughout his years, but he lasted many years, before his friend had to fire him.

Via Tom Joyner Morning Show: Billy Sparks- “I was there…but me and Prince [eventually] parted ways, he got a lil’ frustrated with me, told me I couldn’t bust those records like I used to, LOL. And I was like ‘Prince, c’mom on man.’ But you know, he wanted to get play on regular stations and I tried to explain it to him like ‘Boss, let me explain something to you…this stuff today is different, it’s all about call-out research, you know. Guys like you and Michael [Jackson]…are two great talents but radio….is not like the old days, man.’ So I said, ‘Prince do you listen to radio [and Prince said] *mocking Prince’s voice* ‘I don’t listen to radio!’ LOL…’Okay well, how you gon’ battle if you don’t listen to the plan of action? Nah, but we parted cool.”

They remained friends afterwards and Billy held no grudges against his The Purple One for doing what he had to do for his career.

What Billy Does Now

At the time of that 2016 interview, Billy was still in the concert promotion business, working with many known artists, including singers, Fantasia and Anthony Hamilton.

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