Seems like a lot of artist of today have been bitten by the Prince bug. And that’s fine by me, considering that I absolutely love Prince and appreciate his influence on today’s music, thanks to my big sister. For those Prince fans out there, I just wanted you guys to check out some songs from artist of today that seem to be greatly influenced by the Prince of Purple himself. I’m not making comparisons with these songs, just giving you guys some stuff to listen to!
Ciara – Promise – download / Prince – If I Was Your Girlfriend – download
Ciara’s new single, “Promise” from her upcoming album, “Ciara: The Evolution” (due November 14) was produced by Polow Da Don and I love it because I can definitely hear a heavy, heavy, heavy Prince influence. I was actually surprised because “Promise” isn’t very much like anything out now.
“If I Was Your Girlfriend” comes from Prince’s album, “Sign O’ the Times” (1987). Prince, at the time, was exploring the realm of vocal production. This particular vocal character is “Camille.” At one time, Prince was thinking of releasing a full album with the vocal character Camille. “If I Was Your Girlfriend” was covered by TLC on their “CrazySexyCool” album.
Justin Timberlake – Until the End of Time – download / Prince – 17 Days – download
“Until the End of Time” is one of my favorite ballads from Justin Timberlake’s latest album, “FutureSex/LoveSounds.” The whole album, to me, is very much Prince-inspired. Not only does the production remind me of Prince, but the lyrical content as well.
“17 Days” was originally written and recorded for Prince’s all-girl band, Apollonia 6, but as Prince grew bored with the group’s project, he scrapped the song from the album and recorded it himself, but it was never featured on any album. You can still hear member Brenda Bennett’s voice on the background vocals.
Joi – Dance With Yesterday – download / Prince – The Ballad of Dorothy Parker – download
When I first heard “Dance With Yesterday,” I went crazy. Not only because I could hear it’s heavy Prince influence, but because it was by Joi and I’ve always loved her material, considering that she’s always pushing the envelope. Anyway, “Dance With Yesterday” is one of my favorite tracks from “Tennessee Slim Is the Bomb.”
“The Ballad of Dorothy Parker” was originally recorded for Prince’s “Dream Factory” album, but when that was put on hold, he just released it on 1987′s “Sign O’ the Times.” It’s actually one of my favorite songs on the album.
Robin Thicke – In My Dreams – download / Prince – The Beautiful Ones – download
This song was scrapped from Robin Thicke’s upcoming album, “The Evolution of Robin Thicke” but still was one of my favorites from the sessions because of it’s Prince influence, especially the vocals. I really think this song should have stayed on the album.
“The Beautiful Ones” is a favorite among a lot of Prince fans. It comes from 1984′s “Purple Rain” and is said to be written for The Revolution bandmate Wendy Melvoin’s twin sister, Susannah. “The Beautiful Ones” has been remade and covered many times, but none is better than Prince’s.
Timberlake’s “futuresex/lovesounds” reminds me so much of something george michael.
I thought of Prince { my boy love Prince} when I first heard Promise but not a certain song though! It doesn’t matter because none of these artist even come close to The Purple One!!!! I like Ciara and Robin’s song :}
yeah and we are going hear about him likin dudes soon.LOL
I Looooooooooooove Prince!!!!
Co-sign Brownskincutie, now where is my girl Mizz Ruby on this “Prince Inspired” post?
Brian Thanks for that dose of crack-muzik!
The song Adore by Prince is the GREATEST love song EVER written!
Damn shame, they just don’t make music like they use to.
I like prince. I know that they all will try to bite him but ther is no comparison.
Strictly off topic:
I want to marry Robin Thicke and Collin Farell!
They are both so gorgeous to me! *sigh*
wow ya’ll picked up on it too?…..
i been callin it Princespiration…
dont steal my lingo homies
what can i say about prince and not sound like a freaky stalker???? his music is wonderful!! he writes/plays the music unlike alot of other artists.
it’s really weird, but i liked every song in this post!! i’ve had the “promise” song for awhile, and luv it, if the album is anything like that i will def be buying a copy!
i happened upon “purple rain” after seeing beyonce and prince perform it and ive listened to prince music every day since!! even though i wasnt around when this music first came out it def. is relative today, i mean how can a 3 ft. man talk sooo sexually?? haha key prince songs
erotic city
purple rain!!!
when doves cry
bambi
diamonds and pearls!!!!!!
and that song about the girl masturbating to a magazine!! (whats it called)
#7 obviously u havent seen his “sex tape” haha
I appreciate Prince or Minneapolis influenced songs just like I do the Timbaland ones as long as credit is given where it’s due.
Ciara’s song actually sounds like a cross between ‘If I Was Your Girlfriend’ and a part from Timbaland’s ‘Promiscuous’. Justin Timberlake’s sounds like it borrowed from ’1999′. Never heard anything by Robin Thicke before but her song sounds more like it has a ‘Raspberry Beret’ sound on it mixed with rock. ‘The Beautiful Ones sounds’ good, never heard it before, was especially liking it straight through from the 3:30 point to the end. Thick’s doesn’t compare to it, but then again I only listened to less than a minute of Thick’s song.
Big up to that picture of Prince up there. *must save pic*
In regard to my post #11 – I guess I meant to say that Joi’s song ‘Dance With Yesterday’ sounds like it has a ‘Rasberry Beret’ sound to it, mixed with rock country.
If Robin Thicke is the lead singer on ‘In My Dreams’ at the link on this page, she sounds more like a male than female to me. But yeah the song is very Prince (and James Brown) influenced.
i luv raspberry beret!!! he cant make a bad song!!
#12, robin thicke is a male.
Great Post Brian!
If you gotta be influenced by someone, why not one of the best! Prince is a musical genius. For those that don’t know google him, and find out.
I agree with Asbury “Adore” is the most beautiful love song, EVER!!
Let’s not leave out Janet Jackson’s new single “So Excited”. That synth riff brings to mind Classic Prince. And when I say “Classic”, I mean like his first 3 albums.
I love RB TOO MUCH TO THINK JUSTIN CAN SING. HE SINGS OUT OF HIS NOSE. EVERY TIME HE’s LIVE HE SOUNDS NOTHING LIKE THE SONG.
Ciara’s doen’t sound like Prince to me.
Robin did bite hard from Prince. I know why he hasn’t blown up….. He Sucks. This sounds like Baby I’m Star by Prince
I love prince he is a very talented man… maybe that is why I really love this song by Ciara ( ir it could be because ir is Ciara…).
JOI!!!!!!!
I’m glad people are recognizing Joi’s talent….FINALLY!!
That sista is true talent…
Prince is my favorite artist! He is the ORIGINAL, even though soooo many bite his style. As I was listening to J. Timberlake’s new CD, I was thinking Prince/George Michael the whole time. Great post Brian!
Its not Prince its MIchael JAckson you dumb MOTHA FUCKAS!!!!!
Its not Prince its MIchael JAckson you dumb MOTHA FUCKAS!!!!!
I still sing The Beautiful Ones as if I am as bad as Prince.
The vocals on that song are SICK. You feel the raw emotion.
“DO YOU WANT HIM?”
“DO YOU WANT ME?”
“CAUSE I WANT YOU!”
That shit is ill. I am a Prince Stan for real. The only other song with vocals that make me feel the emotion of the song is MJ’s Got To Be There. That’s another ill song.
My other shit is Darling Nikki. And I also like what he did for other people like Sugar Walls, Nasty Girl etc.
Prince is just brilliant.
@7, I second that emotion. I like the white boys with the dark hair. They are just so sexy to me.
I just adore me some Prince, he’s in a league of his own, Justin Timberlake reminds me more of Michael Jackson though
I know this is off subject but DOES ANYONE KNOW WHEN ROBIN THICKE’S CD COMES OUT???? It seems the release date’s always changing and I’m soo tired of waiting:(
that if i was your girlfriend doesn’t sound like promise to me. it does have to words from that song that jay z and beyonce did where they took pac’s beat.
ciara’s song does remind me of a prince song. can’t remember the name but it was slow, similar beat.
wow, you did your research B!
didnt Alicia Keys bite off of “If I Was Your Girlfriend” as well? add that!
When I first heard that song by Ciara a week ago, the first thing that came into my mind was that her song sounded just like a Prince song. It definitely has that “Prince” vibe to it. I’m glad to see that I’m not the only one who noticed that. I love her song though…she really changed up her style.
#7: asentha above ^
I co-sign with you on Prince
I adore him. He is the best.
Only Robin thicke sound like prince to put prince and Ciara in the same sentence with the word sing is an insult to prince
Ha ha @ #9 its called NIKKI. I’m a true Sta…uh, Fan. I still have his songs in heavy rotation in my truck!
Ha ha @ #9 its called Darling Nikki. I’m a true Sta…uh, Fan. I still have his songs in heavy rotation in my truck!
ciara’s “promise” doesnt sound like prince’s “if i was your girfriend”…nope
Some of the best Prince songs were the b-sides: Scarlet Pussy, God, 17 Days, Irresistable Bitch, Possessed, Let Me Feel U Up, Scandalous Sex Suite, Love Or $, etc.
I swear, people don’t read.
NOWHERE did I say that these songs sounded the same. they were NOT comparisons. I swear.
I love Prince esp The Beautiful ones the lyrics are the best.
i love, love me some prince. 3121 (his latest album) is hot! i listen to the whole album without ever skipping. great song writing–musically and lyrically. it’s like old school prince with new school beats. if this album doesn’t get nominated for a grammy, the industry is hating. here is a man who is still creating great music after 20+ years. justin who?
its so funny reading some of these post… im glad people are giving Prince the respect he deserves.. the man is a Genius.. 17 days is one of my favorite Prince B-sides… i still remeber when i had to hide the fact that i was a fan of the man’s music.. but that was my stupidity….
Um, I thought Ciara song sounded like something of Aaliyah. I don’t get Prince at all…
#34 dont worry im getting to prince stan status slowly but surely haha buh yeah nicki is my jam!!
when i went on a school field trip these two “dope boys” were listening to my prince playlist and loving it haha!!
asbury yo ass is bak!!??? i sent u a message on myspace!! where u been? u still here in the u.s. haha
Thanks for this post!
I swear people don’t listen to me round here when I say they’re biting off Prince.
Some of my favorite artist’s music revolves/d around Prince’s influence : Tevin, Jonny Lang, Thicke, Justin..
“IN MY DREAMS” sounds like Prince just handed it to Thicke and said sing it JUST LIKE I DO.
He’s brilliant forevermore. The Beautiful Ones will be played at my wedding reception. lol
i luv ciara’s promsie….its so sexy. she’s definetly got a hit on her hand..bow wow is prolly turning in his diapers
JC Chasez’s first album was nothing but Prince.
There’s really nothing more that I can add. Prince is an undeniable genius and none of these folks can hold his guitar strap. It’s nice to see some younger folks appreciating him, but that’s what happens when you make timeless music. If you are fortunate enough to see him in concert,you will see the future he sang about in “Uptown” (off the classic “Dirty Mind” CD) black, white, puerto rican, everybody just a freakin’. If you don’t know, now you know. “Dirty Mind” is a classic too…
Cosign with sesamestreet about Robin and Colin. The songs are nice too.
what i love about prince is that his live versions of his songs are always different than what’s recorded. that just goes to show you that he CARES about his art so much that he’s willing to keep it fresh by changing the tempo, or the arrangment….
i’m sitting here listening to the live version of Let’s Work right now
prince is tha man….im glad props r being given to his royalness
i love me some prince
WTF???!! Was that Asbury? Girl I havent laughed out loud in a minute! Nice to know your still alive.
Co-sign with #6. My son is a direct result of “Adore”. It remains (over a decade later) my favorite love song of all times. The Beautiful Ones is a close ass second.
loved all the songs, my favorite is “dance with yesterday”, i heard it on musicchoice a few weeks ago and been in love with it since, her album sounds nice too listening to the snippets on itunes.
Prince is the freakin’ man. I love that cat. Give that man much credit. I remember seeing him in 2004 at the Musicology Tour. I had really great seats, so close to the stage that it felt like we were part of the band. He is even more awsome live. I recommend that you all should him perform live.
As a side not, Justin reminds me more of George Micheal than anybody.
Yeah, thanks Brian, I realized after I posted that Robin Thicke is a male. I should’ve paid attention the other pics instead of just Prince’s, lol.
Not ONE negative post about Prince – love that. Yeah!
#54 nobody better not say anything bad about “purple rain” he’s the man!!!
can we get more prince posts on this site?
i know he’s kinda reclusive, but let’s make an effort haha
Nice post Brian.
I can’t get enough of that triple-CD album (The Hits/The B-Sides) he put out last year with most of his big songs, if not all.
His influence on the songs above is very vivid.
appreciate the expose…. imitation is a true form of flattery for any artist. its nice to read someone else’s critical insights from their appreciation of music.
sir ink in my drink!
Ciara can’t sing, not hating I put her in the class
with Cassie pretty face, but Ciara can dance. I wouldn’t put her in the class with no top singer today
without the techincal support and her dancing she
wouldn’t go nowhere in the music world. Bow wow got
his own we know he’s for real. I wouldn’t want to see
her again singing live nowhere unless she have gotten
some singing lesson in the last year. Now it she have
I happen to hear her sing and she must better then ok
if not, she need to find something else to do and let
someone who really can sing take the stage and the credit. Her music might sound like someone else because of the techincal support. I am not haten I am
calling it as it is.
Say what cha want about Ciara….but this girl is coming with some Fiyah with her next CD!!! Im telling you its gonna be a good CD!!! I love the song “Promise”….She had something on MTV talking about her CD and she got this song called “Like a Boy” or something…..but I cant wait til her CD comes out!!!
True #55! Not a bad word should be said about his royal highness’ musical genius.
Man, I’ve been having trouble getting words to post in this thread these past days. I hope it works this time.