it didnt really sink in for me til today. he was my most favourite musician ever. even if i had fallen out of love with him the past decade or so, my affection for *him* was still high. prince made me interested in so many other genres. he was my connection to rock, jazz, soul, punk even. there was something about him, even at his shittiest, that just sounded in love with creation, with making music. i wasnt surprised he died at his studio. i cant imagine him dying anywhere else.
im esp sad he died so suddenly as he was apparently in the middle of writing his memoirs, something i never thought he would do. cos in a weird way, while it was nice seeing him present a more human side in recent years, on TV and in the press, i also missed the old, inscrutable prince (then again, im not sure he was ever easy to understand).
i dont know what dissensus makes of prince (im assuming dirty mind would be the top dissensus prince pick). i imagine most people saw him as too fey and too funky, not rock enough, too pleasurable, too pop, not 'serious' or 'dark', not macho (i remember when i was at school just how much people would HATE him, not dislike, but actively LOATHE, cos yknow, fucking primal scream or blur etc etc was better of course), but that was what made him so good. he could be all things to all people but also never enough of any one thing (not R&B enough for R&B fans, not rock enough for rockers, too effeminate for rap, etc etc). before he started to care about those things, he was at his best. he made me love a lot of gender-questioning artists, from little richard to bowie. on a more dissensus tip, prince always considered detroit his second city after his own home town (i had a bootleg of his interview with the electrifying mojo that was one of the first times i heard him speak) - i often wish he dabbled more in house and techno than he did hip hop in the 90s (those cities at least showed his influence on them).
he could also be very funny even as he was being vain.
I strangled Valentino (He strangled Valentino)
Been mine ever since (been his ever since)
If anybody asks you (if anybody asks u)
You belong to Prince (you belong to Prince)
you also have to love that his music is nowhere on spotify or youtube.
RIP.