When Doves Cry: A Prince Tribute

Last updated on: April 21, 2016 at 4:48 pm by M. Severson

When Doves Cry: A Prince Tribute 2016-04-21T16:48:53-04:00 M. Severson

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

“I was dreaming when I wrote this, so sue me if I go too fast.”

I lugged my last grocery bags into the house from the car, and the notifications on my phone were going crazy.

First my mom, a friend, then all my friends from Minneapolis and beyond were texting me.

Prince had died.

photo courtesy of Wikipedia

Minnesotans are fierce about their artists, and have an immense pride in the creative abilities that our state produces. Prince is undoubtedly the most famous artist Minnesota has ever produced. The fact that he continued to make Minnesota his home after becoming famous made us love him even more.

Like so many girls, I spent nearly all my free time dancing around my room, or carrying my little boom box to the yard and dancing outside. Before Spotify, YouTube or even CD’s, my music was limited to the radio and whatever tapes I could find around the house. While I loved The Boss as much as any girl, Born in the USA was about the only song on my Bruce Spingsteen tape that I could dance along to. Finding Prince, and this new blend of funk/jazz/hip-hop, was inspiring.

Prince’s music was already “old” by the time my friends and I discovered the beats, funk, and instrumentality that made up his music. On our high school dance team, it was an understanding that no Jazz/Funk routine was complete without a mashup with Prince’s music. My friends and I would watch his music videos, looking for inspiration both for our dancing, but also to get absorbed in the beat.

We all got a kick about Partying like it’s 1999, in 1999. In 1996, when Romeo and Juliet came out with Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Daines, all of our artsy friends cried foul hearing When Doves Cry by a different artist. The song within the film didn’t make the soundtrack, which was redeeming; Prince couldn’t sell out like that.

Today, my kids are no stranger to the music being played from morning until night in the house. We drop the kids off at school with the radio blaring, and thankfully don’t have neighbors close enough to hear the speakers we have attached to our home. Whether Raspberry Beret, Little Red Corvette, or going crazy with Let’s Go Crazy, we were always ready to rock out.

We love music, and to dance, and appreciate the artistry and talent behind Prince and what he brought to a very undiverse, rural area of Minnesota, where we were given an education on Funk, and exposed to music that without the gifts of music technology, we would never have been exposed to.

Rest in Peace, Prince. You join Freddie Mercury and Michael Jackson, as artists gone too soon that will always go down as my most favorite and fun. There were many lonely times when a Prince song pulled me out of a dark place and got me up and dancing again. We love and thank you for the music you gave us. It hasn’t gone unappreciated!

prince

Uncategorized

Previous Post

April 14, 2016

Cooking, and Lack of.

Next Post

April 25, 2016 My Gluten-Free Challenge

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Advocacy All the Tears Autoimmune Disease Babies chronic illness cooking domestic failure Genetics Gluten-Free homeschooling motherhood OVERWHELMED parenthood Parenting Pregnancy Pro-Life Recipes Rheumatoid Arthritis school Special Needs Uncategorized Update

Select a Month June 2017 May 2017 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Which Christian group is known for their rejection of military service and voting?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Pentecostal Anglican Amish Catholic