tavis: good evening frolos angeles. a rare conveation with one of music ' s biggt supstars, prince. the grammy and oscar-winning ic has released a tee cd set on lus fower.com. we wl get his thoughts toght on a numberof subjects including the state of the music dustry and how the digital age is impactingverything fr conte to compensation. we are glad that yhave joined us for a conversation with

prince coming up. >> there are so many things that wal-mart isooking forward to doin like helping peoe live bette we are looking forward to help building stronrcommunities and lationships. with your help, the best is yet to com natiwide insurance probly -- pudly supports tav smiley. worng to improve financial litera and the economic empowerment thatomes with it. >> nationwi is on your de. >> and by conibutions to your pbs stati from viewers like you. [captioning made possib by kcet public television] caption by the nationalaptioning institute --www.ncicap.org-- avis: i am pleased to welco prince bck to this program.

the icon that pducer and singehas been no one of the most proliic? for tee decades. he was inductednto the rock- and-roll hall of fame in 24. her new 3d set feature nude taented young singer. you can get his 3-cd set that -- at lotusflowecom >> ♪ i think i cld love her i hope she walks over i have been waiting to ow her crimson clover over and over ♪ tavisgood seeou as

always >> likewise. tavis: do we ok good? >> looking shp. i amfeeling the sideburns. tavis: that black-anwhite is arp. the bookis a best-selling book. your photographer is here. i remember that conversation en we were talking about the fact that you stayed prty much leaned all of the time. it is not like when you are in the house youave on eats. u are petty sharp all of the time. that is not true? >> yes. tavis: do you know wt? i woulbelieve at except for the fact that you do n sleep. >> i journalist, advocate, insomniac.

tavis: the worl's greatest sician, and sunday at. -- in insomnc. >> i watch your show every single chance i get. joni mitchell. tavisi am glad that yo said that. i didot tell you th story. one day en you weren before i was aroundown somewhere. we have proted that you would come on the next night. i walked pt a group of people and i overheard themalking about the fact that you would be on the sh with the next night. they were asking, why would prince go onbs? prince watches everything, including pbs. >> you he been an advocate and i learned a lot frothe state of the black unn whenou sent it to me i try to check it out when

can. that said, dick gregory, one time i saw him on here it moved me so muc that i put downhe per. i e him money now. tavis: i want to talk about the song "dreamer" that you dedicated. i will come bacto that because you got into unrgivable blackness. what did y make of that ries? >> i am in celebraon right now. i am thankful to be alive. i thankful to have the friends d the teachers that do. i spent the last year playing when i feel like it. i really ok forward to the time my life. i me across that show,

unforgable like thi jack johnson moved me to no end. he had deal with a seemingly insurmountable odds all of the time. he would knock sobody down, peop in the aience would get in the ring and pick him back up. i just related to it in lot of different ways. i ha never spoken about this before, but i was born ileptic. i use to have seizures when i was yung. my mother and father did not know what to do or how to handle it. they did he best th they could with what little thathey had. my mother told me, one day i walked into her and i td her that i wold not sick anymore. she said, why? i said, becaus an angel told

. io not remember sayinit. that is jus what she told me. from that point on, i haveeen having to deal with the lot of thingsncluding gting teased a t in school. early in my creer, i tried to compensate for that by being as flashy and noisy as i could. i look forward to this time in my life wre i could reflect backn it and tk to people like yourself, and dr. rnell west. we would talk about avy things. i just becom thankful. i do not know. tavis: you have so many fans of all ages. there are so young pple watching. they will helped by yo answer to this question as a kid, being teased so mh,

kids get teased for avariety of reasons, how did you what grow out of that into confidce and excellenc how did you grow into that? how d u navigate yourself past that? >> the first thing that i did s that i went into self. i taught myse music. my father left hispiano at the house when he left. i was not allowed to play it hen he was there. i was not agood as him. when he left, i was determined to get as good as him. i taut myself how to play music. i ju stuck with it. i did it all of the time. sooner or later, people in the neighborhood heard abt me. they started o talk about me.

it was not in the teasing fashionit was morelike, look at wha he can do. there is something about hing people ound you giving you support that is motivatin once i got that support from people, that i lieved i could do athing. i had a lot of really good teachers. my best friend and his brother eddie, i am entirely in de it two in this gard. they told me thatour songs are better than anybody. you can do whateverou want to do. i just kept rolng with it. went out york d i got turned down my first tim i felt lke jack johnson ther too. i w not gong to bput down.

tavi back to this cellent ing. talk tome aout excellence. it is clear th you are head and shoulders above anyone else in the wrld of music. th is my assessment. it you are head and shoulders ave everybo else. talk to me aout how we who are not prince can aspire to the lel of excellencehat you portrait in what wo every day. >> erybody isalented at soething. that is wha mkes the world go around. we all need each oher. it is about good mentoring and techers. i d goodeople around. the other thing that i have to point ou -- w can i put this. my fatheras so hard on me,i was never go enough.

was almost like the army wn it came to music. that i not even clos to what i am doing. he would play again. i could heart. by drummer is the same way. we learfrom that. weearn from being show it does not just come from books and reading. we need be shown. it is having read the good teachers and a bar th is so hi. tiger woods and we cod go on and on. >> you talked a cple of times out your fther, which you do not don public. do, everythg aut you is lov you create love. they come into you world a they feel the love. lo in your in lyrical

content. yourhole life is aboua love ofumanity. how did you getntohis place of bei lovehen you have this relationsip with your father that id t always exhibit love? he could be a very in -- you cld be a very man personnel, why not? i have a mean side. i cld go there. i am a fighter. i am very competitive. by him being so rd onme -- he one thing got out of it is that i undetood in his hashness that hwanted me t excel. he ed toay things like, do not ever get a girl pregnant. do no ever get mared. do n do th or do not do that. when he would say the things i

did not know what to take from it. i would create my own unirse. my sister likethat. a lot of my friends are like that. creatg your own universe is the key to get i believe. and letting all of e people that you need occupy at universe. tavis: how have you chosen, w have you dided to maintain th friendships at you have matained over the years? whats your barometerfor knowing whether or not those friendshipsre beneficial? does thatake sense? >> you ca tell whether they are benicial if someone is respectful of you.

respectful of youhen that are not around you. most people are pretty resctful in front of my face. when theyare not around me, sometimes youear them say some pretty hurtful things. i doot think if they think it will not get back t me or if i do notare or if theythink i bove or whatever. i remember them as i remember them. we were in love then and w should be in loveanal. --ovenow. the wor itself is a hurtful place. we do not need to add to get. we are in a place wre we need neanother and it is ing to be roughe i ki of hpe peoplewhen they hear that, th do not think hat i am going to lash out them. i have never done that.

i have heard a lot of things from a lot of different people, pretty famous people. a lot of jonalists. lot of my work based upon my peonality or my past work as oppos to where we e now. it is hurtful. tav: how difficult i it to live in a world -- i take your pnt thathe world is already mean enoughwe do not need to add to get,ow do you contextualize emotionally having much of your work judged by your personality rher than on the merits of the work? >> o reason is becse i like criticism. i' like constructive cricism from smarteople. i am bessednough to be able to say that miles dvis was a

friend he was a wonderful mentor a really funny. he could critie somethin that you have done by humor. and out of lo rather than calling you a punk and dis you. he wasot like that. people he cared about he tri to help. when people criticize my wo and attacked my rsonality, it does not help me. i cannot do anytng with it. i do not know what they want. i have asked writers th before. a lot of times they say that they are just ridg for each other -- wrting for each othe

tavis: i want to connect these ings. i said that youere head and shoulders above everyone elsen this world. most musicns acknowledge that. who is qualied- that is m story d i am sticking to it, whis qualified to critique you? >> anybody. tavis: music critics? fans? other artists >> i do not mind ybody if they do it with a sense of love. if they e trying to show me somethingabout the work that they reallyeel is important for me to know. i do not see a lot in jourlism -of thatin journalm today. most journalists are just lazy tavis: you say that you love constructive cricism from smart people. w do peop critique y if

you are so aheadf your time? if you are so ahead of your time, how could they critue you if they have nocaught up to you >>f they do n feel whai am doing, they are going toet me know. if is someone lov they ll tell me the reasons why. i appreciate th. i write and record all of the time. vis: i cnotet jack out of my head as far as this conversation is concerned. who have you lt most often like in the ringighting the reco industry? like jack or l the opponent? >> like ja. i knewhat i was right. we talk aut this in our very first conversatn together. it is obvious ow that artis are supposeto own tir

masterecordings. in t future it would be unconscionable to tak someone' creation and claim ownerip it. unfortunately, thiscussion is goi to start to barrel into the human genome and dna and the rest of it. when it gets there, w are going to be in deep water. it is better tstart the conversation n before we get into god talk. tavis:here are four sgs tt i want to k you about. i have done wat i ha never done bere, which is to print the lyrics out. am learning some of th. >> who ve you theyrics? i haveseen some really strge rewrites. one time they said the lyrics to "when doves' cry" take a looat

the picture of me, mrvin gaye and the kids. then there was another one, this rson will go uamed, she did not eak the english lguage too go. she had a reay cute daughter. that is why we were acquaintances. she sworup andown that " litt red corvette" was "pay the rent correct." tavis: i am a fast leaer. i caot point to read any of these on their. i amoing to ask you about the lyrical content for thse of you who do not have the rerd, you can g on le and follow alo. since we mentied "dreamer" first, tell me about it. >>when i saw the state of t black union, dick gregory really

moved mend a lot of my frnds and showed me this. they need to hear that so that they know me about all of u what he said affects af us. he sa something that rlly hit home about thi phemenon. when i was a kid i us to see these trails in the sky all of t time. that is cool. a jet just went over. then you started to see a whole bunch of them. the next thing yo know, everyone inour neighborhood is fightinand arguing and you do not know why. you really didot know w. erybody was fighting. he started riffing aout the che

mtrails. he started toay things that hit home so har i uld recommend that evebody tried to get what he said online or whatever and try toet a copy o it and listen to it was so moved tha iad to write this song. thfirst line of the song, since i was born on the se plantation, the united states of the red white and blue. we li in a place that fls st about le a pntation. we arell indentured servants. when i found out thereere eightresidentsbefore george washington, ianted to smac somebo. i wanted to kw why i was taught otherwise. tell me the whole story. i will fill in the blas. do not tl me sething that you thi i am suppos to know. tavis: we are indentured

servants a we have alack predent now? >> i do not vote. i do notave anything to do with that. vis: for those who cussme outnd slapped me in person if i did not ask you why? >> ias born jehovah's tnesses. we have never voted. that is not say that i do not thinkthatresident obama is a very smart iividual. he ses like heeans well. prophecys what we all have to go by now. a very interesting idea, a sold- out concert in lonn we pyed 21 nights in a row andll of the concert wereold out. when i watch television over there andou would see the ited natio feed, you would hear them tk a lot about religion. you would he the bible

mentioned constant. is isnot whawe are used to in the united states. it is almost thathere is no need r d or religion or jtice in politics. there is suosed to be a separation o church and state over here. we cannotave the separationf state an morality though. songs like "eamer" and t other is theame thing. tavis: i have good news and bad news. the bad news is that i amut of time for this show. the good newsis that i ink five be on my producer, i might get prince tstick around for another 12 minutes. if you can tune in tomrow night, we n finish r conversations - it isever over, but will cntinue it. you can get his songst

lotusflower.c. th fine artt that he referenc earlier in this conversation. >>es. tavi now we are talkg. tomorr is par 2 of the convsation with princ she is on one of t three cds in this 3 cd package. hat is our shofortonight. you can access our radio podct on our website. iill see you next ti onpbs. good nht from los angeles. as always, keep the fith. >> for me information on today's show, visit tavis smiley at pbs.org. tavis: drug an nexttime for par two of my exclusive-- join me next time forart two of m exclusive coersation wi

prince >> there are so ny thin that wal-ma is looking forwar to doing,ike helping people live better. we are loong forward to help buildin strongerommunities andelationships. >> nationwide insurance probly supports tav smiley. tavis a nationwide insurance, working to improve financial literacy and theconomic empowerment tht comes with it. >> nationwide is on your side. >> and contributions to your pbs station fromiewers like you. thank you. tavis [captioning made possie by kcet public television]