Prince was a musical genius. Of greater importance to the BU household is the revelation that he did his part in a relative brief stint of in a temporal existence to improve the lot of mankind. If only more human beings were predisposed to assist a sister or brother financially or through mentorship and to resist greed and desire for things, we would have less problems in the world.
Prince Rogers Nelson may you rest in peace.
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One of his most popular songs.
Didn’t know that his philanthropy extended to areas outside of his home region, but he was reported to have a charitable foundation. A very private individual who lived in TO for a few years with his second wife but there was hardly a mention of him in the media although you would hear that he dropped in at some clubs to jam with other musicians.
It is refreshing to know that he used some of his wealth to help those who are less fortunate and I’ll give Van Jones a pass this time as he seemed to be overcome with emotion but I don’t think it was necessary for him to mention Lauren Hill’s name.
The typical successful African-American entertainer/sports star is selfish, greedy, and financially illiterate, wasting huge sums of money on personal status symbols and bad investments. Think Michael Jackson, Will and Jada Smith, Steve Harvey, Mike Tyson and dozens of NFL players. Then there are the athletes who get ripped off by the predatory females they marry. Think Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods.
That does not leave much room for philanthropy. If Prince did help other people, more power to him, but I always wondered why he didn’t do more for Vanity, who was in financial difficulty for a long time, and died in obscurity.
Coincidentally Vanity died at 57.
@ Chad
The typical successful African-American entertainer/sports star is selfish, greedy, and financially illiterate, wasting huge sums of money on personal status symbols and bad investments.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
As opposed to doing exactly what instead?
…hoarding the money and dying super-wealthy?
…spending it on friends and family (bad investments)?
…investing in productive businesses run by albinos?
…donating it to worthy causes?
Try on the shoes before you condemn….
It is the nature of the beast. Blacks are NOT generally driven to amass huge fortunes. We tend to ask ourselves questions like…
“What is the point of getting more …when I am still not happy…?”
“Why am I killing myself to accumulate money for others to spend?”
“Was it not less stressful before all the money…?”
It is not everyone who has the natural will, drive and tenacity to continue the fight to accumulate wealth when they already have more than they could POSSIBLY spend in two lifetimes…
It is what it is.
AFRICAN-AMERICAN CONSUMERS ARE MORE RELEVANT THAN EVER
CONSUMER | 09-19-2013
With a current buying power of $1 trillion that is forecasted to reach $1.3 trillion by the year 2017*, the importance of connecting with African-American consumers is more important than ever. As detailed in a new report published by Nielsen in collaboration with the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA), black consumers have notable distinctions from other consumer groups, and understanding this group critical to making lasting connections.
Currently 43 million strong, African-American consumers have unique behaviors from the total market. For example, they’re more aggressive consumers of media and they shop more frequently. Blacks watch more television (37%), make more shopping trips (eight), purchase more ethnic beauty and grooming products (nine times more), read more financial magazines (28%) and spend more than twice the time at personal hosted websites than any other group.
African-Americans make an average of 156 shopping trips per year, compared with 146 for the total market. Favoring smaller retail outlets, blacks shop more frequently at drug stores, convenience stores, and dollar stores. Beauty supply stores are also popular within the black community, as they typically carry an abundance of ethnic hair and beauty aids reside that cater specifically to the unique needs of African-American hair textures. Overall, health and beauty supply stores have an average household penetration rate of 46 percent among African-Americans, and the average black household spends an average of $94 in this store channel each year, providing a significant opportunity to connect with black shoppers.
But it’s not just their purchasing behavior that’s unique. African-Americans also have distinct digital and mobile behaviors, as they spend 44 percent more time on education and career websites, and 71 percent of blacks own a smartphone, compared with 62 percent for the total U.S.
While 81 percent of blacks believe that products advertised using black media are more relevant to them, only 3 percent ($2.24 billion) of $75 billion spent on television, magazine, Internet and radio advertising was with media focused specifically on black audiences.
Though African-Americans have no language barriers that distinguish them from the total market, specific cultural nuances that make up the “black experience” are important to note for this ever-growing community.
For additional insights, download the Resilient, Receptive and Relevant report.
NOTE
*Selig Center of Economic Growth, 2012.
@chad99999 April 23, 2016 at 12:56 AM …You are an interesting guy. I ‘must read’ your posts to see what absolutely interesting (or outlandish) interpretation you have on trending topics. You never disappoint because like Bush Tea you are both smart fellows so you can always be expected to put a good twist to any tale.
Surely you have stopped… and examined from whence have come most of these ” typical successful African-American entertainer/sports star ” with their ” selfish, greedy, and financially illiterate” selves.
Surely an average poor boy who by dint of his “non-academic” talent soars to the financial stratosphere is by natural inclination going to be ‘reckless’.
But just as surely you are aware that there are several who don’t fit that mould. People like the Admiral (David Robinson) and Jalen Rose have established education programs – in Robinson’s Carver Academy case extensive and growing. There are the Magic Johnson’s who have become entrepreneurs and jobs and opportunity to many.
Those are the highlights. The credits on the ledger are long and for all practical purposes far outweighs the negative side of the books.
Even the shorts sighted guys who buy the two Rolls-Royce or those who buy the Lamborghini, the horse and $thousand dollar pig (the latter to roast; the horse to ride to work) is wastefully ploughing money back into the economy (as per David’s post) .
The Woods/Jordan predatory female remark is amusing. We’ll leave that alone. But that too is money into the economy.
Always interesting you are.
Here is Prince sing a song made famous by another artist but he wrote it.
Putting Harriett Tubman on the 20 dollar bill will ensure the younger, more enlightened generation of blacks in the US, will spend even more in 2030, the roll out date, nicely reverse engineered, it will be nice to know if today’s issues re racism etc, will still exist or also nicely reverse engineered, blink and you will miss it.
It was revealed yesterday that Prince wrote enough songs to last 100 years into the future.
He wrote some of the most hits sung by others, many of them my favorities,,..true genius,
@Chad
It is human nature to sit back and pontificate about how people are spending their money but spending money foolishly is a characteristic widely distributed to humans. I can give you chapter and verse of how Bajans of average means spend money to their own detriment but will leave that to another discussion.
Did you just pull those names at random or do you know what people are doing with their- emphasis on “their”- money? With exception of Tyson (and he was royally ripped off by Don King) whose financial straits we have read about and Jackson who is no longer with us we don’t know much about the others. As for the NFL players how much money does the average player make/have when the average career is 2-3 years and those “lucrative” contracts are not guaranteed? What happens when they retire and or injured and the cheering stops especially when they are uneducated?
We black people make demands often make requests of other blacks that other ethnicities don’t make on their community, why should we demand that wealthy blacks spend their money in a manner that we deem fit?
BTW many black sportsmen/celebrities support charities and give back but it is not publicized. Recently Lebron James (who can’t be considered minor) teamed up with the University of Akron to the tune of $41 million to send 1100 children from that city to University.
“Financially illiterate” strange choice of words many successful people in all types of fields could be considered “financially illiterate”, being good in one area doesn’t make you competent in another and that included finances, don’t get me started on the number of accomplished people who have met financial ruin despite seemingly doing “great” in their chosen careers.
Pur jealousy, it was revealed that Prince was the only man in the world could wear a tank top, a girly like midriff…..and still steal your girl, left many men in tears..lol.
Not to mention the high heels, he said he wore them, not only to add height to his 5ft 2′ frame, but that the girls…loved them and he was very well formed, judging by one of his album covers where he was totally nude…lol
People talk about wealth, have they any idea how much in taxes these entertainers, athletes etc have to pay IRS, dont be surprised that most end up with very little or nothing due to mismanagement of their funds by accountants etc, if they are not savvy themselves, theft or the taxman. It’s a balancing act. The taxman always wins.
Just ask Wesley Snipes, did a 5 year stint in prison couple years ago or ask Billy Baldwin nearly got put away for a long time. It’s ok to sit and talk, without facts.
Ask hundreds of other athletes and entertainers how much fun it is…bet you wont want any of it.
Thank you, Sarge!
@ David April 23, 2016 at 9:29 AM #,
“Another view”
Eamonn Holmes comments are ludicrous.
We are sure most of the platitudes about the artist known as ‘Prince’ are probably true. However, the normalization of androgyny, if merely as a public marketing persona, continues to be troublesome to most of the world.
The Who to play alongside The Rolling Stones, Pink Floyd and Bob Dylan at the ‘greatest’ rock festival of all-time
The line-up of Sixties pop music titans beggars belief, with an official announcement imminent
- Jess Denham
- @jess_denham
- Thursday 21 April 2016
- 37 comments
The Who are set to perform on the same night as Pink Floyd’s Roger Waters Getty Images
Forget Glastonbury, the greatest festival line-up in the history of rock music has just been announced.
The Who’s Roger Daltrey has confirmed that news of a huge California event from the organisers of Coachella is true, with his band set to perform alongside Pink Floyd’s Roger Waters on the third and final night.
“I think it’s us and Roger Waters on the same day. It’s a fantastic idea for a festival. It’s the greatest remains of our era,” he told Canada’s Postmedia Network. “I hope a lot of normal fans can get tickets before they get snatched up.”
Sounds epic, right? Wait until you hear the other rumoured headliners, all of whom are responsible for revolutionising pop music in the Sixties and Seventies: it’s Bob Dylan and The Rolling Stones on the opening night, followed by Paul McCartney and Neil Young on the second.
Mick Jagger proves he’s still got moves with The Rolling Stones (Getty Images)
Young’s manager Elliot Roberts has also dropped hints, telling the LA Times that the plans are “so special in many ways”. “You won’t get a chance to see a bill like this, perhaps ever again,” he said. “It’s a show I look forward to more than any show in a long time.”
Organisers Goldenvoice and AEG Live are yet to make an official announcement as negotiations are still being finalised, but fans should expect tickets to be gold dust.
Gotta let people live as long as their lifestyle does not affect yours. For those who dont know his real name is Prince Roger Nelson, the product of a concert pianist father and social worker mother…go figure.
@David”If only more human beings were predisposed to assist a sister or brother financially or through mentorship.”
Dear David:
Some of us don’t like to lead/mentor.
Some of us have no money.
Some of us (like me) assist by giving dozens of blood donations.
Lolll!!!
@de pedantic Dribbler April 23, 2016 at 8:29 AM “The Woods/Jordan predatory female remark is amusing. We’ll leave that alone. But that too is money into the economy.”
You know that this is too good for me to leave alone. My take on this is that Woods and Jordan got something that they highly valued. And whenever we highly value something that is money well spent.
Back in the day an old man in the village sold an object to buy something which he highly valued. His wife did not approve.
He told he “I sold what I had in order to buy what I want.”
I don’t know why the old labourer did not get a Nobel prize for his wisdom.
Michael Jordan married an undistinguished woman, Juanita Vanoy, who worked as a secretary. She took $168 million of his money when the marriage ended.
Tiger Woods married a nanny, Elin Nordegren, who made off with an undisclosed amount of his money when they divorced. Forbes Magazine estimated that the divorce settlement was $100 million, but other estimates have been as high as $750 million. That’s for six years of marriage. By any definition, she’s a predator.
@ Chad
She took $168 million of his money when the marriage ended.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Leaving him with what?…. $168M+?
Boss, that is a bargain …to get rid of the kind of women that mostly infest the institution called marriage nowadays…
Shiite man, Bushie is even tempted to offer that amount to ac …
…if she promises to go away for ever… 🙂
@Chad
Are you suggesting that Messrs. Jordan and Woods should have married someone with comparable earnings or potential for earnings? It ain’t gonna happen people with money invariably marry people who are not as wealthy as they are because they presumably love them, “the heart wants what it wants or else it does not care” (E Dickinson). No one held a gun to Jordan’s or Woods’ heads and I think that Woods had a prenup so if the prenup was generous to his ex wife he should look in the mirror.
I don’t know why you are going on about who married whom and who is a predator both Jordan and Woods are not in the poorhouse and Jordan has gone on to marry a younger woman who has borne him two children, I expect Woods will do the same.
@Sargeant
Where did you go to school? The point being made is that for various reasons — selfishness, personal greed, the assault of female predators — most successful African-Americans never get around to philanthropy. Prince is said to have tried to be an exception.
I would add that you must have a poorly developed moral sensibility if you are not offended by the obscene amounts of money utterly undeserving and unworthy females are allowed to appropriate from gifted men who had to work extremely hard, and then compete fiercely, to earn their personal fortunes. And this is all part of a system of justice (and taxation) that involuntarily transfers hundreds of billions of dollars from men to women every year.
“oppressed.”
See below first 5 secs at start of video of an Ass-Naked Prince (revealed later)
at US 1994 ‘ground-breaking’ MTV Awards…America is the first Empire in history to move from Barbarism(slavery & the Wild West) directly to
Decadence without an intervening period of CIVILISATION-
Malcolm Muggeridge UK Philosopherhttp://theconcourse.deadspin.com/princes-1991-mtv-video-awards-performance-is-the-maybe-1772314076
Some have questioned Prince’s bona fides as a guitarist until…
Hants?
@ David
America is the first Empire in history to move from Barbarism(slavery & the Wild West) directly to Decadence without an intervening period of CIVILISATION-
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
…at least we had about a decade of so in Barbados …of civilisation…
Chad…why are you not saying anything about Jordan’s new wife who has the potential to make off with half of the remaining 168 million and what will he do with so much money anywsy, money is useless if you have no one t8 leave it to, what’s he gonna do, line his coffin with it,, sharing it with his spouse who has to put up with good and bad is the better person to have it, than keeping in and being miserly.
Jordan’s first wife had to put up with the indignity and embarrassment of him disowning their first child and refusing to support her, along with his many years of public cheating, she more thsn deserves her 168 million and he should count his blessings that he was not left with $5 in his pocket.
And apparently you dont know, but Jordans first wife was instrumental in his business being a total success, so you need to tone down your jealousy of females who have the abilities to attract rich and powerful males, when those males screw up their marriages because of their weaknesses, you do not blame the females, blame the males.
Chad…you know you have some deep seated issues re females, right. Your Mom, bless her, should have made you go out there and find that college money for yourself….builds character.
Tiger Woods got what he paid for and it was not like he himself was some saint…lol
@Bush Tea
Which decade?
No doubt about it, Prince played a guitar until it screamed and popped it’s strings, he played the piano until it hummed. Music just ran through his veins.
As to that, more than once, assless performance, pure sex appeal..lol
Shiite man, Bushie is even tempted to offer that amount to ac …
…if she promises to go away for ever… 🙂
Is ac your trouble and strife
cockney translation : wife
a fire storm of sort has begun over the controversial but necessary statement made by Bobby Morris stating that an apology from whites on behalf of their ancestors who owned slaves or were actively engaged in the slave trade should be forthcoming
Added to this ongoing fire storm is Professor Watson statement about Bussa role in the revolution
It seem as if there are some in Barbadian society black and white who forget that when people have been wronged that the decency of that wrong should be merited with a intent to heal old wounds by any means necessary
Those who have suffered the physical and psychological pain and suffering dead or alive from the atrocities of slavery needs a constant and persistent voice as a reminder to those who have benefited and still are benefiting from the atrocities of slavery inflicted by there ancestors on blacks and in every sense of the word that they are no less guiltless of those crimes since they have become the beneficiaries of many wrongs .
The beneficiaries should not hide in silence and remained deaf and muted as if the wrong disappeared when their ancestors died giving them a free pass of exclusions separating themselves from those wrongs but should be drum majors for healing willing and ready to issue the apologize an apology which will relive them from carrying the baton of evil handed to them by their ancestors while replacing the baton with a distinguished merit of cleansing which eventually separates and removes a heavy burden left behind by their ancestors
There are over 100 historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) in desperate financial condition today that need large donations or bequests from wealthy African-Americans. Hopefully, Prince will include at least one HBCU in his will.
Bill Cosby made three or four large donations to colleges before his reputation was so completely ruined by accusations of “sexual assault” that no college could be seen to be accepting his money. He is currently facing civil lawsuits from a large number of women who are trying to make off with what’s left of his personal fortune.
to the Peter Wickhams who now sit in their ivory towers of comfort and choose to FORGET with pristine verbosity and attitudes of ungratefulness those lives YES lives Yes HUMAN BEINGS not just symbols of a past experience also should be reminded that the calls for AN APOLOGY is rooted in an humanitarian Right a right that cannot be forgotten or simply dismissed with an effort by those calls to forget . Forget a horrific past of negligence , Forget a past depleted of self worth and dignity While FORGETTING the Divine right to a pursuant of happiness equally and justice for all
Forgot to mention to Chad that when Jordan and first his wife started dating and having children, he was not a millionaire neither did he have a business, so she cannot be accused of wanting him for money he got during their relationship and marriage…always check your facts first when going on the female hating rants.
Cosby got exactly what he deserved, he admitted in a court deposition to drugging women, comeuppance is right around the corner, since that confession will now bite him.
Watson is just making white noise to fool the blacks he knows can be fooled, so is Andrew Bynoe, Seale must have spat in his mouth.
David;
Re, your 6:02 am post
Thanks for that youtube video.
I was not a Prince fan as I recoiled from his (to me) outrageous promotion as an androgyne and therefore tended not to listen to his music outside the very popular tunes that one could not avoid and which played up his singing rather than his guitar playing skills.
But that video is awesomely impressive and showcases a superior rock-guitar talent which I regret I was unaware of. He looks to be in the same class as a Jimi Hendrix, something that I could not have envisioned myself ever saying, ignorant as I was.
I’ll now have to scour youtube to find other examples of his guitar playing talent.
The outpourings in the wake of Prince’s death are bringing to light the huge contributions of his unique personality to many facets of entertainment and, indeed, the human spirit.
May he rest in peace.
@Are-we-there-yet
Some people get distracted with his boy girl fetish but he was a musical genius, known to play many many instruments.
David;
A lot of people play many instruments. Bajans Nicholas Branker and Lowdown Hoad play many instruments well with Nicholas Branker being a world class talent on Bass Guitar and Lowdown being a natural good player on several instruments including a wide range of wind and stringed instruments. In my view, playing many instruments does not trump absolute excellence with one. Prince, from that video alone, was a world class rock guitarist.
I freely admit to having dissed Prince’s enormous talent as a rock guitarist by a self censorship of not listening or watching his performances over the years which has actually resulted in my not even having any of his performances in my personal collection of great musical performances of the last half century. THis dissing resulyed from, in addition to a popular 1960’s and 70’s prejudice against anti-men, a reaction to one of Prince’s very early videos where a stage performance of his appeared to me to be a somewhat amateurish energetic copy of James Brown and not up to the class of several performers of those times. Regretfully, I did not update my opinion in later years when he would almost certainly have improved.
I therefore plead guilty to be one of the people you excoriate in your 10:15 am post.
@WWC
Bill Coby did NOT admit to “drugging women”. He acknowledged that he offered some over-the-counter medicine to a Canadian woman who complained to him of being sleep-deprived but unable to sleep.
The woman, who is a lesbian mulatto with an anti-male agenda, turned her encounter with Cosby into an opportunity to enrich herself through a lawsuit that alleged that he “sexually touched” her. There is no allegation of rape, but the woman blackmailed Cosby by threatening to ruin his reputation with embarrassing claims. She took a large sum of money in exchange for her silence, then double-crossed him by going to the media with the stories she had agreed to suppress. We know she is treacherous. We have good reason to believe she ia also a liar.
@Chad
Let’s say I didn’t go to school, which was fortunate for me otherwise I may have ended up at a place that taught a “moral sensibility” that men should treat women as chattels to be used and discarded when we moved on to the next one. Wouldn’t want to end up at an Institution where the academic community nurtured your latent dislike of women into full blown misogamy or where men are seen as gifted and women as predators after their money.
Two questions don’t some women partner with men who earn far less than them or are worth far less than them? What do these men with “vast personal fortunes” married to “predator women” tell their children about their mothers?
@Are-we-there-yet
You must understand the context when mention is made of Prince playing multiple instruments. The standard at which he operated makes it a given he was very very good on multiple instruments.
http://uproxx.com/music/10-albums-in-which-a-single-musician-plays-every-instrument/
@ Sargeant
.. don’t some women partner with men who earn far less than them or are worth far less than them?
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
How frequently have you seen that Sargeant…?
…compared to the other way around…?
@ David
Roughly ’75 to ’85 in the Bushman’s estimation.
@ Kiki
How are things pal…?
Bushie has his weaknesses – but none so dastardly… 🙂
@ David
The artist once ‘formerly known as Prince’ was a freak of nature – period.
He happens to have been musically talented.
Some other freaks can run fast as shiite…
Some have photographic memories…
Some can see a cricket ball like a breadfruit…
…such is the luck of the draw….
This no more makes them a ‘great human’, than is a person born with Downes Syndrome automatically an ‘inferior’ human being.
Ultimately, the only meaningful measure of greatness is the character of the hunan being.
Prince was an average joe in that regard…..
His main contribution to humanity was his role in helping us to be distracted by sexuality and music from the REAL issues of living on this earth….
His death will be no real loss….
David;
I think I understand the context.
What I’m trying to say is that there are several musicians who play multiple instruments and that such an indicator is not necessarily a pointer to their overall musical genius. That’s all.
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