Prince

Year:
2004
Inducted by:
Outkast & Alicia Keys
Category:
Performers

Introduction

Prince was the rare artist that could do everything well: sing, dance, write and arrange songs, produce music and lead a band.

An astoundingly prolific—and chameleonic—songwriter, he released dozens and dozens of albums throughout his nearly 40-year career. He also invented the "Minneapolis sound," an electric and eclectic funk/R&B/synthrock hybrid that became massively influential in the '80s and beyond.

Alicia Keys and Members of Outkast Induct Prince

Alicia Keys, Andre 3000 & Big Boi of Outkast Induct Prince at the 2004 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony

Alicia Keys and Members of Outkast Induct Prince

00:07:49
Prince Accepts Hall of Fame Induction

00:02:26
"Let's Go Crazy"

00:03:51
"Sign 'O' the Times"

00:04:10
"Kiss"

00:03:06
"While My Guitar Gently Weeps"

00:06:16
Lenny Kravitz Tribute to Prince

00:06:49

Hall of Fame Essay

2004

Rob Bowman

Concisely summing up the accomplishments of Prince is a nearly impossible task.

The undisputed heir to the funk crown worn by James Brown, Sly Stone and George Clinton, he is equally capable of writing and playing mind-melting rock & roll and concocting some of the greatest pop anthems of all time (can anybody say “Purple Rain”?).

Impressive as his mastery of these three ubergenres are, funk, rock and pop are just the tip of the iceberg. In the past quarter century, Prince has proved himself an alchemical genius, drawing on a wealth of vernacular American traditions including blues, gospel, soul, folk and jazz while' forging one of the most distinctive, rich and diverse bodies of recordings in American popular music history.