Don´t believe the hype; Prince is back on the throne!

PART 1 – DON’T BELIEVE THE HYPE! 

I did believe the hype! I bought the promo work that had been done for months before the release of the latest Prince album “HITnRUN” Everywhere you could read that the album was to be released exclusively on streaming service, the Jay Z owned Tidal. Some one at the PR-company of Tidal must have had the best laugh in their life. Exclusively on Tidal – sorry to say so – that’s bull…. and we bought and sadly still buys the hype!

Lets clear things up. The album HITnRUN was exclusively releases as Tidal-only release the 7th of september. Price latest album was released exclusively on Tidal for one week. I repeat for one week only! Exactly a week later, the 14th of september, the album HITnRUN was released on iTunes Store, where you could support the artist – and actually buy the version, instead of streaming only – and download it on you Apple product or PC. The album was released on CD the 15th of September. Probably vinyl also. The album is not possible to stream on Apple Music. As soon as I discovered the album was on iTunes I bought the album – and freaking love it!

The Tidal deal has made Prince releases all his albums on Tidal, including albums previous only available on his NPG Music Club. Albums that has only had a few listeners – can now be streamed exclusively on Tidal. It´s off course a fab way to release much sought after albums, and albums that has for long time been bootlegged (if you did not purchase the album through NPG Music Club back in the day). It’s fabulous to see all albums lined up. Every single album lined up on one place. That´s 36 albums buy the worlds biggest artist!

Spotify has no Prince albums. Itunes Store has “HITnRUN”, ART OFFICIAL AGE, PLECTRUMELECTRUM, and some of his ’00 albums, some of his ’90s albums, and all of his ’80 and ’70s albums in its catalogue. The winner his is without doubt Tidal!

To sum up this part; Prince “HITnRUN” is NOT only available on Tidal. You CAN purchase it on iTunes, you CAN purchase the physical copies. You can listen to the album (almost) wherever you like

PS! I do not have Tidal myself just to have every single album by Prince in one place, but have Spotify and Apple Music subscriptions + I own every album released physically up to “20TEN” on CD, and Vinyl. The three latest Prince releases have been bought on iTunes! 

PART 2 – PRINCE IS BACK ON THE THRONE!

So how does “HITnRUN” sound? The album sounds like a Prince album pimped up with todays sounds. It’s unmistakingly a Prince album, even though he has co-production on the album by Joshua Welton. Josh Welton did also co-produce the Art Official Age album. For a long time Prince fan it made my jaw drop to the floor. Prince – gets production help – what happened! Actually not much, Josh has without doubt the musical legacy of Prince in his blood. It sounds unmistakably like a Prince record – with hints of ’90s and ’00 house and club music. The help from Joshua Welton has spawned very much attention – and some roll the dice and gives the album a 1 – others give it a 6, on the other side the Prince albums of the ’90s and early ’00s has been getting mixed reviews. It’s something we have learned to live with when it comes to Prince and his releases.

Being a Prince fan one may think that every record Prince release is pure gold and class. But no, there has been both misses and hits in his catalogue. In my Prince-loving heart it has been 11 years since the release of a classic Prince album, Musicology. You may disagree with me, and that’s no problem for me! 

Prince steals from his own catalogue; Where and what is up to the listener to find out my findings is My Name Is Prince, Get On The Boat, Screams of Passion, Papa, 80s Prince, 90s Prince, ’70s prince. He borrows from modern soul stars like Miguel, Justin Timerlake, Pharrell, Dornik, D’angelo who again has Prince as their musical muse. 90s house, 70s disco, Dubstep  Prince tweaks his own voice, auto tune – but he is doing it with class and style, and not letting it take over the sounds every one knows as Prince. An all female league guests the album Lianne La Havas, Judith Hill, Rita Ora and Curly Fryz!

Thanks to Josh Welton Prince dares to flirt and spice up his unmistakably Princesque production. HITnRUN sounds like an album prince has been working to release the last 10 years. From 3121, Planet Earth, LotusFlow3r / MPLSound, 20Ten, Plectrumelectrum and to Art Official Age – if you rip those albums apart bit by bit, and put them carefully together again as one album – you’ll get HITnRUN! Princes latest album is the sound of Prince having fun!

Prince sum up his HITnRUN best on the intro to the first track, were he samples his own For You, 1999 and Let’s Go Crazy;

All of this and more is for you…
Don’t worry I won’t hurt you I only want you to have some fun…
Dearly beloved we´re gathered here today to this thing called…

New K. Michelle 3 track mix tape!

Sometimes all you need is a piano – and a voice. And in this case the voice belong to K. Michelle.

On her brand new mixtapes “The Hold Over” on the first track she lets the piano and her fantastic voice carry the song “Million Hearts” – alone. If i should draw a line to another song I choose to call the song her “…And I Am Telling You (I´m Not Going)”. Second song “Pain Killa” is K. Michelle talking from her heart. Straight forward, explicit lyrics. As it is! Third song “Wish I Could Be Her” is more rhythmic – strong song, beats, great lyric.

The mixtape of lost love and wishing she were in his arms – “The Hold Over” can be downloaded here

Thanks to the music blog Music X Infinity and its author Jasmine Holloman for sharing – and for making me kick my self in my butt for bad research for my Take note, K. Michelle Is here blogpost 😉

Take note; K. Michelle is here!

If the music lovers, bloggers and music business in the world is awake, they will take note of the name K. Michelle at once, because 2013 seems to be the year she will have her major breakthrough! At the end of 2012 I´d discovered the fabelous K. Michelle mixtapes, planned to do a blogpost about her – but sadly this blogpost have been delayed time after time. Now it´s finally here!

To make a short introduction first; This is K. Michelle 

She is a fabolous soul songer-songwriter, producer, pianist, with her strong voice as her weapon of choice. The voice that brings to mind; First and foremost; Mary J. Blige and Fergie (off the group Black Eyed Peas) (Personal note: Fergie, is a really underrated vocalist, check her solodebut “The Duchess” for her wide eclectic musical range). Secondly:  Names like Sylenna Johnson, Alicia Keys and Jennifer Hudson. K. Michelles sites her own musical influences to be R. Kelly, Mary J. Blige and Whitney Houston.

The releases of K. Michelle so far!

K. Michelle has released 4 great albums – all of them as indipendent mixtapes. The high quality of those, makes all of them really worth checking out.

Here´s all her mixtapes all in a row:  From top left “What´s the 901”, top right “For Colored Girls”, bottom left “Signed, Sealed and Delivered” and bottom right “0 F..ks Given”. Click on each albumtitle to download the mixtapes for free!

Back in november 2012, she hooked up with a major record company – Warner Bros. Records – and her forthcoming official debut album is planned to be released by the summer of 2013, to spoil the title “Rebellious Soul”, exactly release date will be August 13th (maybe July 13th).

During her career so far she has worked with and collaborated with huge names like R. Kelly and Gucci Mane and Missy Elliot, and thats even before she got a official record deal. K. Michelles duet with R. Kelly on the “Love Letters” album, “Love Is” is a real gem worth checking out!

Of K. Michelles four mixtapes, my favourite is “0 F..ks Given” (“Zero Fucks Given”) – a future classic, actually I´m temptet to call it her “Nostalgia Ultra”. Here she lets her voice and flow really shine through. The lyrics are really strong and in-yer-face.  In songs like “U Gonna Learn Today” she lets the lyrics circle around a rough lifestyle and hard background, of life as a stripper and single mom, she really rips her soul out – and in the songs lyrics begs for respect for working her ass off and really doing what she can to have the best life for her self and her little family. The lyrics, as on many of her songs, have explicit lyrics. This is stories from the heart and the streets!

The lyrics to the song “U Gonna Learn Today” is so strong, that i want to quote it here as-is:

“U Gonna Learn Today”

Well since y’all here with me today, (K. Michelle)
I might as well keep it one hundred nowThey say I drink too much, curse too much,
I can be a little rough, but in God I trust.
Hypocrites so quick to judge,
I’m loving all my fans, Y’all be showing me love.He say this, she saying more,
Yeah, I was a stripper, but I ain’t no whore.
Don’t make me forget what I’m here for,
Keep your record deal, I don’t want it no more.’Cause you don’t know what it’s like to not kiss your son goodnight.
I got my foot in my door, but everyday’s a fight.If this record make you feel some type away
It might be a bullet shot out your way
‘Cause I’m a throw shade when I get paid
All I can say is you gonna learn today.
Hey, you gonna learn today.The dude behind the desk wasn’t impressed
But no disrespect, they be cutting him checks.
Ooh, better watch what I say,
Record ex, throw you back, they don’t play.I have been around the world, slept with some girls,
Smoked a little weed, but they don’t define me.
Ooh, this is my life, who are you to tell me what’s wrong and what’s right?’Cause you don’t know what is like to not kiss your son goodnight,
I got my foot in the door, but every day’s a fight.If this record make you feel some type away
It might be a bullet shot out your way
‘Cause I’m a throw shade when I get paid
All I can say is you gonna learn today.
Hey, you gonna learn today.You know, people tend to talk the most
About things that they know the least about.
My name’s always in somebody’s mouth
They like to talk a lot of shit about me, you know what I’m saying?
But I’m just grateful, I don’t do it for them,
I do it for the women, I do it for my family
And I do it for the love of the game and of music,
Know what I’m saying?
I think you all owe me some respect
I don’t forget.
More than you ever learn in all of your lifetime,
You know what I’m saying?
So if you wanna know about me, you come see me and ask about me.
So if you ain’t know now you know.
And for all y’all that keep throwing that hate
You can just kiss my ass.

She spits the words out, wrench her soul – and begs you to listen to her message!When it comes to K. Michelle you really should NOT give a f… but instead really listen to her strong message – and show her the massive respect she deserves!