How Being a Jehovah Witness Changed Prince's Life

Multi-talented singer, producer, songwriter, record label owner Prince was found dead in an elevator on the morning of April 21, 2016 at his Paisley Park complex. An emergency call was placed at 9:43 a.m; he did not respond to CPR, and was pronounced dead at 10:07 a.m. He was 57 years old 

What is relatively unknown is that Prince is a deeply religious man.  Songs such as "God," "I Would Die 4 U," "What If," "Sign of the Times," and others hint at his faith.  Famously, Prince was quoted as saying, "Every song is either a prayer or foreplay." 

In 2001, Prince joined the Jehovah's Witnesses following a two-year-long debate with friend and fellow Jehovah's Witness musician Larry Graham. Prince said that he did not consider it a conversion, but a "realization". "It's like Morpheus and Neo in The Matrix", he explained. He attended meetings at a local Kingdom Hall and occasionally knocked on people's doors to discuss his faith.

How has becoming a Jehovah's Witness changed Prince's life? For starters, Prince turned his back on many of his most explicit hits as his religious convictions deepened. In 2014 he announced he planned never to use swear words again - a big call from a man who, in 1992, released a single called Sexy Motherf***er.

Neither has the "Purple Rain" singer performed his massive 1991 single Gett Off (with its memorable chorus "Gett off! 23 positions in a one-night stand") and the notorious filthy "Jack U Off" since 1989.  Prince hadn't completely turned his back on his more sexually explicit songs, though. Given its place on his creative masterwork Purple Rain, he was performing "Darling Nikki" right up until his final concerts.

Ultimately, Prince in his later years demanded respect both for himself and others. "Did you ever hear Muhammad Ali curse?" he said in a 2014 interview.

"Would you curse in front of your kids? To your mother? We shouldn't curse at them. We need to treat all of them, and all people, like royalty."

Moreover, Prince reportedly needed double hip-replacement surgery since 2005 but would not undergo the operation unless it was a bloodless surgery because Jehovah's Witnesses do not accept blood transfusions. The condition was rumored to be aggravated by repeated onstage dancing in high-heeled boots.

 

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