At New York's Apollo Theater last night, Prince has announced to a packed audience that he's planning a tour that will kick off "on a purple day" in December where he will be serving as Master of Ceremonies. He said the tour is "best described as what we've all been waiting for." He told his fans "The nights of entertainment will feature some of the best artists this country has to offer," Prince promised reporters. "They know what time it is. So come early and come often, because every time we play it's always something new. No two shows will be the same. I have a lot of hits. Bring your friends, bring your children, bring your own foot spray -- it's going to be funky!" Though no specific dates, cities or venues were announced, the shows are scheduled to kick off in December and will feature Prince playing a gold-plated Fender guitar that will be auctioned off at the end of the live run with proceeds beneftting the Harlem Children's Zone. Wearing gold-rimmed aviator sunglasses and a black turtleneck with his 21 Nights In London DVD flashing on a projector behind him, the legendary pop wunderkind announced the shows, titled "Welcome 2 America," which will feature funk, R&B and jazz artists including Maceo Parker, Janelle Monae, Cassandra Wilson, Sheila E., Lalah Hathaway, Mint Condition, Esperanza Spalding and famed funk outfit Larry Graham & Graham Central Station. The Minnesota native also confirmed that he and the New Power Generation would also perform nightly alongside featured acts. "I didn't want to talk too much but how many have seen 'Waiting for Superman,' " he asked before bringing out Harlem Children's Zone head Geoffrey Canada who also spoke briefly about how grateful he is Prince chose Harlem as the venue to announce the series. BET's President of Music Programming Stephen Hill, a long-time fan of 'The Purple One,' introduced Prince to the throngs of media outlets present at the press conference. A few months back, the network awarded Prince with a Lifetime Achievement award at the 2010 BET Awards. Hill reminisced on his first Prince concert in 1982 at the Apollo and more recently flying to Nice, France to see his two-hour set and another two-hour long after-hours set. "I know what I hope he's here to announce," but admitted he was out of the loop on what the big announcement was. At the press conference, Prince also debuted the full version of his new song 'Rich Friends.' Earlier this year, he released his album '20Ten' in newspapers across Europe and in the UK, but refused to allow access to the album to digital download services.
Friday, October 15, 2010
PRINCE TO TOUR WITH ESPERANZA SPALDING, MACEO PARKER, CASSANDRA WILSON, SHEILA E. & OTHERS
At New York's Apollo Theater last night, Prince has announced to a packed audience that he's planning a tour that will kick off "on a purple day" in December where he will be serving as Master of Ceremonies. He said the tour is "best described as what we've all been waiting for." He told his fans "The nights of entertainment will feature some of the best artists this country has to offer," Prince promised reporters. "They know what time it is. So come early and come often, because every time we play it's always something new. No two shows will be the same. I have a lot of hits. Bring your friends, bring your children, bring your own foot spray -- it's going to be funky!" Though no specific dates, cities or venues were announced, the shows are scheduled to kick off in December and will feature Prince playing a gold-plated Fender guitar that will be auctioned off at the end of the live run with proceeds beneftting the Harlem Children's Zone. Wearing gold-rimmed aviator sunglasses and a black turtleneck with his 21 Nights In London DVD flashing on a projector behind him, the legendary pop wunderkind announced the shows, titled "Welcome 2 America," which will feature funk, R&B and jazz artists including Maceo Parker, Janelle Monae, Cassandra Wilson, Sheila E., Lalah Hathaway, Mint Condition, Esperanza Spalding and famed funk outfit Larry Graham & Graham Central Station. The Minnesota native also confirmed that he and the New Power Generation would also perform nightly alongside featured acts. "I didn't want to talk too much but how many have seen 'Waiting for Superman,' " he asked before bringing out Harlem Children's Zone head Geoffrey Canada who also spoke briefly about how grateful he is Prince chose Harlem as the venue to announce the series. BET's President of Music Programming Stephen Hill, a long-time fan of 'The Purple One,' introduced Prince to the throngs of media outlets present at the press conference. A few months back, the network awarded Prince with a Lifetime Achievement award at the 2010 BET Awards. Hill reminisced on his first Prince concert in 1982 at the Apollo and more recently flying to Nice, France to see his two-hour set and another two-hour long after-hours set. "I know what I hope he's here to announce," but admitted he was out of the loop on what the big announcement was. At the press conference, Prince also debuted the full version of his new song 'Rich Friends.' Earlier this year, he released his album '20Ten' in newspapers across Europe and in the UK, but refused to allow access to the album to digital download services.
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