Today, April 21, 2018, marks a tragic day for music. It marks the second anniversary of the day we lost not only a great artist, but also a kind, caring philanthropist. Prince never bragged about his hard earned musical accolades, nor the countless money and donations he’d given to so many in need. He was simply, Prince- a brotha who loved purple, needed to create music as much as he needed air to breathe, and loved his fellow musicians, such as Morris Day, of the legendary band, The Time.
https://www.facebook.com/morrisdayandthetime/photos/a.304064689732610.1073741825.304062929732786/1046291458843259/?type=3&theater
Morris Day and Prince go way back, like Ultra Sheen hair grease and du-rags. However, it’s also no secret that throughout the years, Prince and Morris Day had a longstanding beef that lasted nearly 30 years.
Thankfully, Morris Day made peace with Prince at some point before his passing…or maybe even posthumously, not quite sure- but the point is, he’s at peace with the Purple One and the love is real. On the 2nd anniversary of Prince’s untimely death, that love is evident in the flurry of online tributes the 60 year old charismatic “Oak Tree” singer has been paying to his late homie for the past 48 hours. Check out some of his many posts to Prince below…
https://www.facebook.com/morrisdayandthetime/photos/a.610593775746365.1073741832.304062929732786/1046295792176159/?type=3&theater
https://www.facebook.com/morrisdayandthetime/photos/a.610593775746365.1073741832.304062929732786/1046089155530156/?type=3&theater
https://www.facebook.com/morrisdayandthetime/videos/vb.304062929732786/751006635038411/?type=2&theater
https://www.facebook.com/morrisdayandthetime/photos/a.610593775746365.1073741832.304062929732786/1046454762160262/?type=3&theater
They Go WAAAY Back
Although many fans assumed Prince and Morris Day were cousins back in the day, the truth is they met in high school in the 1970’s, in their hometown of Minneapolis, MN. They were students at rival high schools and introduced by mutual friend and music producer, Andre Cymone:
“We hung out, and I found out (Cymone) was in a band and I went to watch them. The band was just crazy. These guys were 13, 14 years old — Andre on bass, Prince on guitar and sometimes keyboard. The band was playing Santana, and Prince was doing these solos like he was 20 years old,” [Morris Day] recalled [in a prior interview]. “It was just crazy.”
From then on, they were damn near joined at the hip, because they began working together musically and Prince ultimately created The Time band, which was originally led by Alexander O’Neal (before he was fired). Morris Day was The Time’s drummer, before Prince promoted him to lead singer and the rest is history.
Prince & Morris Day’s Decades-Long Beef: Fights, Control, Tension
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Prince and Morris Day’s friendship started going left, due to “creative issues.” Morris reportedly grew tired of the fact that Prince controlled all of The Time’s musical direction- including their songwriting. Apparently, Prince refused to allow them to take over the creative direction of The Time and by 1984, during the “Purple Rain” movie release, which Morris Day and The Time starred alongside Prince, all hell had broken loose between the high school friends. According to an NYPost report, their ‘tension resulted in an on-set fight that was broken up by the Time’s drummer, Jellybean Johnson.’
It was also rumored that Morris Day wasn’t invited to the “Purple Rain” movie premiere. He reportedly had to rely on Pepe Willie, the founder of funk group 94 East, who was married to Prince’s cousin, to get him a ticket. Geesh!
That wasn’t all though…
Via NY POST: The tension grew more because Morris was becoming increasingly frustrated with the group’s lack of creative input. Things came to a head on the final night of the tour in Cincinnati during the Time’s set when Prince and some of his band threw eggs at their supporting act from offstage. Prince demanded no interruptions during his performance, but as soon as he left the stage, a food fight erupted. When the battle continued at the hotel, Prince made Morris Day pay for all damages, claiming that he had started the whole thing.
We report state all this to display that love is powerful and can supercede any amount of petty BS that so oftentimes destroys friendships/relationships. Morris Day’s unwavering love for his lifelong friend, Prince, is a true representation of that. May Prince continue to rest peacefully are a job well done.
