by Hahn, Alex
One of the boys, known to his friends as Skipper, has been hoisted up and installed on the shoulders of another boy. Although shorter than most of the others, sitting on his friend’s shoulders, he now towers above them.
The expression on Prince Rogers Nelson’s face is one of pure joy.
He throws his Afro-ed head back and laughs, then waves his arms in the air. He goofs with his friend, shouting in mock protest as they trot around the lawn. Bouncing along on his friend’s shoulders, he can’t stop laughing; his happiness is
unguarded. He’s one of the guys, and a treasured member of the gang.
***
A year later, during the group’s annual visit to the same summer camp, the Rev. Art Erickson, the Minneapolis community leader who organized these trips, took another home movie. Erickson focused in on Skipper, who this time stared blankly at the camera without expression. Holding the camera still for several moments, Erickson captured the visage of a withdrawn and guarded adolescent; the joyous Skipper of the previous summer had vanished.
There was a devastating reason behind the transformation. During the year that had passed, this sensitive, highly imaginative and artistic boy had spent hours locked in a room by his stepfather. In his isolation, he began to feel that no one deeply cared for him – not his mother, who failed to prevent this abuse, nor his emotionally remote and physically absent father, who wasn’t there to stop it.
Over the year between the shooting of Erickson’s two videos, Skipper’s identity changed, and so did his name. He started calling himself Prince. As a result of a serendipitous encounter at a junior high school gym, he met a best friend in Andre Anderson, whose family took Prince in. Still, a clear sense of home continued to elude him as Prince moved from sharing a bedroom with Andre into a dank basement in the Anderson home. His lingering pain caused him to become in many ways a bitter kid, taunting others and picking fights. But he was also a bright kid, something that was apparent from his wit, and there were times when there was no one more fun to be around than Prince.
Above all, he had been given a gift.
In the years to come, Prince honed and developed that boundless gift of musical talent through thousands of hours of dedicated practice. Slowly but steadily he began to exert control over a world that he had previously felt powerless to change.
In adulthood, he created his own culture, his own values, and his own lifestyle, all centered on his music. He defined and redefined his public image countless times, each one of them a different version of cool, mystery, and intrigue. But behind these many guises, he still bore the loneliness of a child who never fully healed, who struggled to feel worthy of love and connection, and who often erected barriers whenever people tried to become close to him. He would rarely allow himself to be vulnerable, or even to open himself to spontaneous physical demonstrations of emotion. And as a result, even at the peak of his fame, genuine contentment would continue to elude him.
Yet, in what would be the final years of his life, Prince began to relax his emotional defenses and to move through the world in a more natural, less guarded way. His final tour, where he laid his soul bare on a stage with only a piano and microphone to accompany him, was perhaps his most vulnerable and courageous undertaking in a career that defined the word “fearless.”
In the transition from Skipper to Prince, something essential was lost, left behind on an idyllic day at a summer camp in Wisconsin. At the same time, something profound was also gained. In turning to music as his solace and source of healing, Prince would discover a purpose that would inspire him to push himself to greater and greater musical heights. The many gifts that Prince was given – including his boundless talent, energy, and determination – were multiplied and amplified as he shared them with the millions of fans who loved him, whom he loved back, and who went along with him on his incomparable journey.
Acknowledgments and Source Notes
This book combines the following sources of information: (1) original interviews and other research conducted and performed for this book in 2016 and 2017 by Alex Hahn and Laura Tiebert; (2) original interviews conducted by Alex Hahn and research assistants in 1999-2000 for his book Possessed: The Rise and Fall of Prince (2003); (3) interviews performed by Per Nilsen, Duane Tudahl and others in the context of Uptown magazine during the 1980s and 1990s, which were generously made available; (5) the voluminous public record of print, audio, and video interviews of Prince and his associates; (6) unreleased music and concert footage made available to the authors by collectors; and (7) the insights and observations of leading Prince experts including Simon Mulvey, Hamish Whitta, Duane Tudahl, and Zach Hoskins; and (8) the incredible archival work of princevault.com.
The following individuals were interviewed, in many cases multiple times:
Marylou Badeaux
Don Batts
Roy Bennett
Howard Bloom
Mark Brown
Sueann Carwell
Bob Cavallo
Gayle Chapman
David Coleman
Dez Dickerson
Rev. Art Erickson
Matt Fink
Brett Fischer
Steve Fontana
Owen Husney
Terry Jackson
Jill Jones
Jellybean Johnson
Karen Krattinger
Alan Leeds
Eric Leeds
Shauntel Mandeville
Samantha McCarroll-Hynes
Peggy McCreary
Bob Merlis
Paul Mitchell
Monte Moir
Chris Moon
Bobby Z. Rivkin
David Z. Rivkin
Susan Rogers
Tony Saunders
Charles Smith
Vaughn Terry Welks
Louis Wells
Pepe Willie
Source Notes and Special Thanks
The authors wish to extend their immense gratitude to Terry Jackson, Prince’s childhood classmate, member of his high school band Grand Central, and friend for many years thereafter. Terry’s exposure to Prince across the entirety of his childhood and teenage years – as someone who attended grade school with Prince and was a band mate and close friend throughout his formative years – is certainly one of the most important living sources on this period. His role has never been thoroughly addressed in any previous book about Prince. Terry, who became a friend as well, was patient with numerous hours of interviews, follow-ups, and fact checking. His thoughtful insights have been essential in forming a nuanced portrait of this absolutely critical period in Prince’s development.
We also extend our great thanks to another generous source, Prince’s high school friend Paul Mitchell, who was gracious in being interviewed and offered numerous follow-ups.
We also extend our great thanks to the Reverend Art Erickson, who was involved in Prince’s life as a boy and observed him as he grew into a young man, and who was able to shed important light on the culture, neighborhood and schools on Minneapolis’ north and south sides during that era.
We also extend our great thanks to Sueann Carwell, who was interviewed many times and was very generous with her time, and who also became a friend in the course of this project.
Thank you to Vaughn Terry Welks and Louis Wells for providing important information about the creation of Prince’s clothing design and photographs.
Great thanks to Alex’s old friend Jefrey Taylor, whom he met waiting in line for tickets to the Lovesexy tour in 1988. Jefrey provided insight, support, and encouragement throughout the project.
The following persons either refused requests for interviews or did not respond to written requests (and in some cases, multiple written requests directly and through intermediaries): Dr. Michael Schulenberg, Kirk Johnson, Phaedra Ellis-Lamkins, Tyka Nelson, Morris Day, Dwayne Thomas, Jr., and Jeremiah Freed.
Owing to his importance to Prince’s formative years, the authors made exhaustive efforts, across several months,
to secure an interview with Andre Cymone. In the end, Andre provided only a few very short responses to written questions. We therefore relied upon the voluminous number of very detailed interviews he has given over the years.
Efforts were made to contact Tyka Nelson through intermediaries, Facebook, and legal counsel.
Wendy Melvoin and Lisa Coleman, at the time that Possessed: The Rise and Fall of Prince was being written, declined multiple requests for interviews. Since that time, Wendy and Lisa have engaged in numerous interviews with other authors and journalists that exhaustively catalog their perspectives. The same is true of Warner Bros. executives Mo Ostin and Lenny Waronker.
Cover and Photography
We extend our profound thanks to Michelle Palko-Smith, who designed the book’s cover. Michelle’s tremendous creativity proved of utmost importance in creating the visual identity of this project. Michelle’s open-hearted generosity will always be reflected in this book and enjoyed by anyone who reads it. She was patient, kind, and endlessly creative in her efforts.
We also extend our profound thanks to rock photographer Paul Natkin, whose extensive library of Prince photographs added immeasurably to the book.
Editorial and Other Assistance
We are extremely grateful to Abby Ellin for proofreading and copyediting on very short notice. Marina Rose provided additional copyediting assistance, offering her generous support when it was greatly needed.
We are also extremely grateful to the following persons who provided editorial assistance. Paul Bulos provided chapter review, encouragement, and advice on a regular basis, often providing us an emotional boost when we most needed it. Simon Mulvey provided drafting assistance and particularly helpful contributions on the Lovesexy tour, as well as friendly encouragement, and many enjoyable phone conversations. Hamish Whitta reviewed multiple chapters and provided extremely valuable feedback and fact checking. Duane Tudahl provided introductions, advice, and friendly encouragement and feedback almost on a daily basis. Zach Hoskins also offered advice and provided helpful feedback and support.
Tremendous gratitude and appreciation is extended to Per Nilsen’s contributions to Possessed and his great contributions to the study of Prince over the years.
Thank you to Arno Meulenkamp for his valuable assistance and expertise on formatting matters.
Alex’s father, Robert Hahn, put aside his own writing to provide his own warm, friendly, but immensely penetrating editorial feedback whenever we asked.
Thank you to literary agent Sharon Bowers for her assistance with the project, and also to literary agent Katherine Flynn at the Kneerim & Williams Agency for her assistance on rights issues.
Other Special Thanks
Special thanks to the administrators and moderators of our “Make the House Shake: The Life and Legacy of Prince” Facebook group, Marie Stafford Kruger and Christopher Arnel. Marie and Chris managed the group on a day-to-day basis and also provided constant encouragement and friendship. They spent an immense amount of time and did an incredible job.
We also extend special thanks to “Unique,” who otherwise asked to remain anonymous, for his great insights into Prince’s live canon, which were provided on almost a daily basis in the late stages of the project.
We thank and recognize Michael Dean of Podcast Juice: The Prince Podcast, for the tremendous research he unearthed in conducting numerous detailed and fascinating interviews over the course of his podcast. Michael, an incredibly astute interviewer and thinker, has made life immeasurably easier for any Prince scholar, including us. Michael’s work is further acknowledged in the endnotes of this book.
Likewise, the outstanding and informative Dr. Funk Podcast of Jeremiah Freed, aka Dr. Funkenberry, was an invaluable source of information, and that work is likewise also acknowledged in the endnotes.
We extend our great thanks to members of our Facebook group, “Make the House Shake: the Life and Legacy of Prince,” who made a priceless contribution to this book, in the form of research, contacts, observations, fact-checking and emotional encouragement.
Thank you to Marlyou Badeaux for her generous interviews for Possessed and for providing her photo with Prince.
As indicated in the acknowledgments of Possessed, great gratitude is extended to Alan Leeds for his thoughtful observations in the course of Alex’s reporting of that book.
Very special thanks to the following people who provided numerous forms of generous assistance: Victor Stuhr, Neal Karlen; Ronny Bhadra; Andrea Swensson; Beth Renner Regrut; Anna Adda; Sav Annah; Kundry Sangs; Jim Mosher; Sylvia Burch; Anil Dash; Beverly and all of the moderators of Prince.org.
Laura Tiebert
I’d like to share a personal thanks to my husband Andy, for getting a job in Minneapolis in 2016 and bringing us to the land of snow. Thank you for your love and unwavering support. Thanks also go to our sons, who not only moved to Minnesota, but cheerfully immersed themselves in all things Prince. To Alex, thank you for generously giving me the benefit of the doubt when I first reached out to you to share that I was a writer who somehow landed in Chanhassen merely weeks before Prince’s passing. The deep sadness over the loss of Prince has been healed by traveling this once-in-a-lifetime journey. Your willingness to share your project with me, along with your drive, integrity, intelligence, work ethic, staunch partnership and wonderful Alex brand of humor has resulted in not only a book, but an experience that has enriched my life immeasurably.
Alex Hahn
I wish to extend my personal thanks to my wife, Sunali Goonesekera, for her love, support, and immense patience with the time this project took. My profound gratitude is also expressed towards my father, Robert Hahn, for his great friendship and support as we made it through the loss in 2016 of his wife and my mother, Nicole Hahn Rafter, to whom this book has been dedicated.
My most profound gratitude is extended to co-author Laura Tiebert. Without Laura’s participation, this project would never have developed into what it ultimately became. Laura’s intelligence, wit, patience, and enthusiasm were of incalculable value in helping us complete this complicated and challenging project. It is rare to find in a person a combination of such humanity, warmth, dedication, energy, and talent.
I am also thankful to have had the opportunity to get to know Laura’s husband, Andy, and wonderful sons Joel and Tom, and appreciate their hospitality during my visits to Chanhassen.
Warm Thanks and Gratitude
D.L. Davis
Britney Winesburg
Chambers Stevens
David Kelly
Jennifer King
Kelly Sherwold
Gary Sherwold
Tricia Veknach
Andrew McMichael
Kieran Kinsella
Alan Bradley
Adam Mundok
Bobby Calderon
David Hostens
J.D. Silva
Matt Barco
Roald Bakker
Pascal Comvalius
Angelo Schifano
Patrick Jordens
Harry van Oers
Michael Bijtenhoorn
Essex Davis
Grant Evans
Allen Jacoby Johnson
Bryan Vargas
Mark Vellutini
Sonny “Hollywood” Pooni
Mary Sturino
Christine Trejo-Monson
Eric Matthew Jones
Mark Prince
Beth Prince
Chris Riddell
Richard Lynch
Ronny Bhadra
Malene Dalgaard Nielsen
Denise Vorbach
Matt Conrad
Kae Lewis
Roger L. Lee, Sr.
James Thomas Roberts
David Nierman
Fanseen Smith
DeLano McRavin
Kevin Jevon Hurston
Joel Cahn
Keith Middleton
Emilio J. Urrusuno
Jony and Isaac George Lawson
Sam R
ai
Murray Castro
Sandy Calderone
Aaron White
Marc “Scramblelock” Sakalauskas
Petter Aagaard
Ken McCullagh
Paul Doble
De Angela L. Duff
Brian McCluskey
David Baker
Erika Peterson
Rasmus Küpper
Gailya Goode
Tracy McConnon
Gerson Fitié
Daniel Stokes
Courtney Alexander Murray
Wendy Monks
Erica Wagila
Carol Ann Blaubach
Lesley Ward
John Myers
Elizabeth Olafsson
Angelisa Higgins (aka CC)
Jay Cohen
Michael Paris
Lisa Lincoln
Erica Eaton
Christine McLaren
Adrienne West
Mika Kiviranta
Cheryl Beato
Stephanie Kemp
Judy Ellender
Victoria Sawma
Gregory Davis
Rose Poulakos
Nick and Theresa Henkelman
Sarah E. Folsom
Sonji Moreland
Lynn Nolan
Nancy Linn
Vincent Bernatowicz
Travia L. Charmont
Wendy Pardike
Marina Rose
Chris Johnson
Kris Baker
Krista Haas Starros
Eric Greenwood
Beverly Eagle
Micha Jong
Steve Marshall
Ron Mitchell
Azif Wekare
Mark Wittebort
Felicia Ann Roque
Leslie Swiantek
Camille Brandstetter
Ernest L. Sewell, IV
Mike Gontko
Jochen Stein
KaNisa Williams
Stuart Fleming
Kaitlyn Welloka
Dori Hudson
Javish R.