Prince’s legendary vaults have been cracked open, and although we’re still waiting for the thrash-metal album from the late musical legend that we know must be in there somewhere, his estate has officially announced a new live record, Piano & A Microphone: 1983, on the date of what would have been his 60th birthday.
Ever since Prince died in April of 2016, there have been arguments, rumors, lawsuits (and even the occasional abortive music release) centered on his reported vault of unreleased tracks, as publishers, streaming services, and the legendary musician’s family all battle their way through the complicated web of rights…
Janelle Monáe has devoted years to developing the saga of Cindi Mayweather, a renegade android hunted for having the gall to fall in love with a human. The meticulously crafted character is at the center of much of the Grammy nominee’s work, including the funk-opera Metropolis, and her subsequent full-length releases, …
According to Variety, Warner Bros. and Prince’s estate are set to release a full album of unreleased music in September, with caretaker Troy Carter implying that it will be some kind of cohesive work like a concert or—as Variety theorizes—“thematically linked songs.” Carter doesn’t say much, but he notes that it’s…
Prince was a prolific artist, so much so that Warner Bros. and Universal got into a bit of a feud over which company would get to control the contents of his vault of unreleased recordings, but Prince’s estate is now looking to get all of his stuff organized by hiring a dedicated “archives supervisor” at Paisley Park.…
When the public was informed of Prince’s untimely death, people immediately took to sharing videos of their favorite live performances to showcase what a singular talent the man was. One of the most shared videos was Prince’s 2004 appearance at the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame, where he joined Tom Petty, Jeff Lynne, and…
The funky, sensual rhythms of Janelle Monáe’s “Make Me Feel” single, off the upcoming Dirty Computer, are so reminiscent of Prince that fans have been bopping along like it’s 1999. As it turns out, the song (and ridiculously sexy video) is more than just an homage to the Purple One—according to Monáe, she was…
In what could potentially turn out to be the rare instance of a verified musical superstar being upstaged by a glowing column of light, there are rumors going around today that Justin Timberlake might pull out a hologram of Prince at tomorrow’s Super Bowl half-time show. The news comes courtesy of TMZ—hence why we’re…
Pam Warren—a.k.a. Pam The Funkstress, a.k.a. Purple Pam, a.k.a. the Turntable Queen—has died, Rolling Stone reports. Best known for her sonic collaborations with Oakland-area rap outfit The Coup, Warren was a celebrated hip-hop artist who also served as the personal DJ for Prince in his final months.
Hey, you wanna hear a joke? Knock knock!
Showtime recently announced in a press release that it has acquired the rights to Sign O’ The Times, a rare Prince concert film that hasn’t been seen on American TV in over a decade and has never been issued on DVD. Originally created as a “companion” to the 1987 album it shares a name with, the documentary includes…
There has probably never been a person in the history of the world who is more associated with a single color than Prince was with purple, so Prince’s estate and the Pantone Color Institute have teamed up to honor him with his very own hue of purple called “Love Symbol #2”—a nod the thing he changed his name to in the…
I’d consider myself a “dinner party” jazz fan: In my 1,300-plus vinyl collection, I have a small shelf reserved for my just 30 or so jazz records, mostly composed of the universally respected artists that would be welcome as background music to all those sophisticated social gatherings I never have. Titans like Miles…
Not long before his death, Prince decided to pull nearly all of his music videos and concert footage from YouTube, arguing that the site’s licensing fees are unfair and that it was in his best interests to control his own music. Now, since Prince is dead, Noisey is reporting that his YouTube ban has been lifted, and…
Performing pretty well for a 33-year-old album—and explaining why the arguments and legal bickering surrounding Prince’s music catalog and fabled “vault” of unreleased music continue to be a big deal, money-wise—Purple Rain is suddenly back near the top of Billboard’s Hot 100. Specifically, the album’s deluxe…
As reported by Billboard, longtime Prince drummer John Blackwell Jr. has died. Blackwell was diagnosed with multiple brain tumors a little over a year ago, causing him to lose the use of one arm and leg, and he had been undergoing treatment since then. He was 43.
Despite Prince’s attempts to control the release of his music while he was alive, the door to his vault(s) has been flung open a couple of times since the iconic artist’s death in April 2016. ABC News reported on the musical treasure trove just days after his passing, while Warner Bros., which had a contentious…
Welcome back to AVQ&A, where we throw out a question for discussion among the staff and readers. Consider this a prompt to compare notes on your interface with pop culture, to reveal your embarrassing tastes and experiences, and to ponder how our diverse lives all led us to convene here together. Got a question you’d…
According to TMZ, Prince’s family has been purposefully trying to stop the release of a new album of unreleased music, but it’s not because they don’t want people to hear the songs he left behind. As it turns out, they want to save the songs for a reality show project they’re developing about “how their lives have…
It’s been a little more than a year since Prince died, and in a move that does not come across as shamelessly greedy at all, Warner Bros. Records and NPG Records have announced a couple deluxe editions of Prince’s Purple Rain. Oh sure, everybody who didn’t already own Purple Rain probably bought it after he died, but…
