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About Portland observer. (Portland, Or.) 1970-current | View Entire Issue (May 4, 2016)
May 4, 2016 Page 7 O PINION Your Carpet Best Cleaning Choice Martin Cleaning Service Carpet & Upholstery Cleaning Residential & Commercial Services Minimum Service CHG. $45.00 A small distance/travel charge may be applied CARPET CLEANING 2 Cleaning Areas or more $30.00 Each Area Pre-Spray Trafic Areas (Includes: 1 small Hallway) 1 Cleaning Area (only) $40.00 A Man Who Refused to be Deined or Conined Nothing compares to Prince m arC h. m orial It was July 4, 2014. The Essence Music Festival was marking its 20th anniversary. The headliner of the annual celebration of African-American music and culture was none oth- er than Prince. I had the privilege of seeing Prince in concert that hot summer Louisiana night—or should I say, I was lucky enough to experience the tour de force and phenomenon, whose sudden and untimely death we mourn today. Prince was a star in every sense of the word. He was a maver- ick who deined and redeined musical genres; an icon, whose inluence could be felt in every in every corner of the globe; an outsider who deied the proit structure and control of the very industry that propelled him to in- ternational mega-stardom; and an advocate who seamlessly connect- ed his music to the ight for racial justice, including reminding a Grammy audience that, “Albums still matter. Like books and black lives, albums still matter—tonight and always.” There was more to Prince than pop masterpieces, provocative lyr- ics and purple rain. I could em- ploy every word in the dictionary to describe the man, but it would by prove easier and perhaps truer, to say that nothing compared to Prince. And nothing ever will. The son of a bandleader and a singer, Prince Rogers Nelson was a musical prodigy. He began play- ing piano and writing music while he was in elementary school. He was signed to a local Minneapolis band while other teenagers were stressing over high school prom dates. The world was formally introduced to the budding musical genius when he signed to Warner Broth- ers Records with the R&B infect- ed, falsetto pop standard “I Wanna Be Your Lover.” At the tender age of 21, Warner Bros. granted their then-new artist, Prince, unprec- edented autonomy and creative control over his debut album. It would be a freedom he would not enjoy for long. In the 90s, Prince engaged in a very public war with Warner Bros. over control of his music and his name—going to the extreme of scrawling the word “slave” on his cheek and referring to himself as “the Artist Formerly Known as Prince,” or an unpronounceable glyph until he was freed from his contract. Prince would go on to sign with Tidal, the music streaming service part-owned by Jay Z. In a 1996 in- terview with Rolling Stone mag- azine, Prince explained, “People think I’m a crazy fool for writing ‘slave’ on my face. But if I can’t do what I want to do, what am I? When you stop a man from dream- ing, he becomes a slave. That’s where I was. I don’t own Prince’s music. If you don’t own your mas- ters, your master owns you.” Prince’s ight for control over his material was not about Prince. Like everything Prince has ever done, it was about a greater cause and a greater good that touched the lives of hundreds, thousands or millions. He would also use his fame and his famous voice to become an outspoken critic of ra- cial injustice in our country. After protests over the death of a black man at the hands of police ofi- cers in Baltimore, Prince penned a tribute to Freddie Gray that in- cluded the line, “Does anybody hear us pray for Michael Brown or Freddie Gray?” As revealed by Al Sharpton, Prince also sent money to the family of Trayvon Martin after the teen’s shooting death. Van Jones recalled that Prince would only play the 2014 Essence Music Festival if the organizers agreed to host a hackathon of Ye- sWeCode, Jones’ non-proit that encourages urban youth, particu- larly young black men and women to learn how to code. Prince was as much an advocate as he was an artist. We are saddened at the loss of this musical giant, a man who re- fused to be deined or conined in any area of his life, this risk-taker, prodigy and genius. But we have his musical legacy to console us, because as Prince reminds us in “1999”: “Life is just a party and parties weren’t meant to last.” May he rest in purple peace. Marc H. Morial is president and chief executive oficer of the National Urban League. he Law Oices of Patrick John Sweeney, P.C. Patrick John Sweeney Attorney at Law 1549 SE Ladd, Portland, Oregon Portland: Hillsoboro: Facsimile: Email: (503) 244-2080 (503) 244-2081 (503) 244-2084 Sweeney@PDXLawyer.com Includes Pre-Spray Trafic Area (Hallway Extra) Stairs (12-16 stairs - With Other Services) : $25.00 Area/Oriental Rugs: $25.00 Minimum Area/Oriental Rugs (Wool) : $40.00 Minimum Heavily Soiled Area: Additional $10.00 each area (Requiring Extensive Pre-Spraying) UPHOLSTERY CLEANING Sofa: $69.00 Loveseat: $49.00 Sectional: $109 - $139 Chair or Recliner: $25 - $49 Throw Pillows (With Other Services) : $5.00 ADDITIONAL SERVICES • Area & Oriental Rug Cleaning • Auto/Boat/RV Cleaning • Deodorizing & Pet Odor Treatment • Spot & Stain Removal Service • Scotchguard Protection • Minor Water Damage Services SEE CURRENT FLYER FOR ADDITIONAL PRICES & SERVICES Call for Appointment (503) 281-3949