Released: 30 July 2021
Prince turns prophet as he looks to the future with his posthumous release ‘Welcome 2 America’.
Originally recorded in 2010, the album was scrapped and went unreleased for a decade, before being unearthed by the late star’s estate for its first official release.
Clocking in at 12 tracks, the LP features 11 Prince originals along with a cover of Soul Asylum’s Stand Up and B Strong, and sees the star tackle several cultural issues in a hard-hitting examination on the state of the US.
Look no further than opening cut and title track Welcome 2 America; a spoken word piece painting a picture of a country obsessed with celebrity, sex, hedonism and excess.
It’s a world we’re all too aware of now, making its decade-long existence – just three years into the ‘iPhone age’, at the start of the social media revolution – even more surprising.
There are greater enemies afoot, he warns, with Running Game (Son Of A Slave Master) calling out the exploitation of Black culture for commerciality, particularly within the music industry, while Stand Up and B Strong is the perfect counterpart, paving the way for Black Lives Matter.
‘Your knees get weak… Your heart grows cold/You’re tired of doing everything that you’re told,’ he sings on the cover version, urging listeners to, ‘stand up and be strong.’
Despite its message, ‘Welcome 2 America’ is rich with musical influence, exploring pop-rock, gospel and soul while maintaining Prince’s trademark funk sound.
That’s the genius of Prince; his drive to combine artistry with activism never compromised the quality of his work.
It’s hard to understand why ‘Welcome 2 America’ was shelved – perhaps the world just wasn’t ready – but five years after Prince’s tragic death, it’s bittersweet to be blessed with new music, and one of the best albums of his latter years.
‘Welcome 2 America’ is available on CD, standard 2LP Black Vinyl and limited 2LP Clear Vinyl, along with a special Box Set Edition.
