Here is our alternative and extended transcript from this week's Purple Rain Bite-Sized episode of Look Behind the Look. It features more thoughts on the film and extended clips featured in the episode. If you haven’t seen the episode yet, don’t forget to tune in here and subscribe for our next bite-sized edition. Enjoy!
I transported back to 1984 for another bite-sized edition of Look Behind the Look this week. Our beloved host and my dear friend, Tiffany Bartok, has properly educated me on all things 1984, and I emphatically believe it was the greatest and most influential year in pop culture. While I admit I wasn't alive at the time, I spent my childhood idolizing all things 80s and Prince in particular. I came of age in the era of the "artist formally known as Prince" but was singing "When Doves Cry" on the way to school every morning. It wasn't until I was an adult that I understood the meaning of his lyrics and most of Prince's masterful body of work.
Devoted Prince fans understand that his genius and music had already made an impact well before Purple Rain. Still, it undoubtedly solidified him as the most talented artist of all time. The album and the film haven't left the zeitgeist since entering and revolutionizing the world. While Purple Rain simultaneously launched him into the stratosphere of superstardom, it also became his undoing in many ways. So, purify yourself in the waters of Lake Minnetonka and join me as I unpack Prince's masterpiece.
Purple Rain's Impact
Purple Rain is not just a song or film; it's a tribute to the Minneapolis music scene of the '80s. Prince insisted on shooting the movie in his hometown to showcase the vibrant local music culture. The First Avenue nightclub, featured prominently in the film, was an actual venue where Prince and many other musicians performed. This authenticity added a real touch of Minneapolis flavor to the story, which, while the film was ultimately fictional, many elements were pulled from Prince's real-life experiences.
Prince initially called the film Dreams and had a vision for the movie closely tied to his own experiences, and Dreams was meant to reflect the aspirations of a young artist. However, as the project evolved, the title was changed to Purple Rain and ultimately transcended the typical boundaries of a rock musical. The film became more personal and powerful in presenting a story of the complexities of the black experience, generational trauma, toxic masculinity, and misogyny in and out of the music industry, and even exploring queerness alongside the performative nature of gender and sexuality.
Writer and Director Albert Magnoli wove intentional details like the Kid and his father Francis's tense and violent relationship, which mirrored Prince's tumultuous relationship with his father, as well as the authentic and lived experience of black artists who were stolen from and left behind for other white artists to succeed. All complicated themes of trauma managed to be told in a way woven with theatrical, electrifying, erotic, over-the-top, and unforgettable musical sequences.
It's not lost on me that a lot of the understanding of the film was not initially embraced or even talked about by white audiences. Still, decades later, we can now understand and see Purple Rain's impact on other artists like Spike Lee and Ava DuVernay to tell more complex black stories. A true testament to Prince's vision, always being ahead of the curve and capable of releasing art that otherwise had yet to see the light of day at the time, especially with a major studio like Warner Brothers attached.
The film's cultural and monetary success was a game-changer. The Purple Rain album spent an incredible 24 consecutive weeks at number one on the Billboard 200 chart, and Prince won both an Oscar and a Grammy for his work. Purple Rain marked the zenith of his career and expanded his global influence.
All of the splendor did come at a cost. In a 40th anniversary retrospective, Variety reflected on Prince's disillusionment with his mainstream fame, writing, "Prince began rejecting it almost as soon as it was his, with odd statements and behavior, meandering onstage speeches about religion, a fake retirement from concerts, and not least being the only major celebrity to decline an invitation to take part in the all-star charity single "We Are the World." Prince had always cut an unusual figure and rarely played the pop star game. But even by his standards, this was a lot. The claustrophobia of such massive fame was only part of the problem: Far more significantly to him, it made him feel trapped creatively as well."
In a separate interview with the Chicago Tribune years before his death, Prince confessed, "Purple Rain was my albatross — it'll be hanging around my neck as long as I'm making music…It pigeonholed me. I nearly had a nervous breakdown on the Purple Rain tour because it was the same every night…I was doing the 75th show, doing the same thing over and over, and I just lost it. I said, 'I can't do it!' I knew I had to get away from all that."
Wendy Melvoin, who also starred in the film, shared in Variety, "Prince was tired of basically playing the movie every night,"
In 2019, the film and album were preserved by the Library of Congress and remain the cornerstone of his legacy. It is crucial to understand how he, as an artist, was able to metabolize it all despite us, as fans, revering it so profoundly. The Purple Rain era catapulted his career and ultimately shaped the rest of his life, spent between dispelling his genius and detaching from the world and claws of fame.
Now, tell me about the wig…
I love me a wig story, and I can't believe I didn't realize that Prince was wearing a bouffant hairpiece in many scenes in the film. Prince's former art director, Steve Parke, published Picturing Prince: An Intimate Portrait, featuring intimate, behind-the-scenes photographs he took of Prince during his time at Paisley Park. In that book, Parke shares when he asked Prince's longtime hairstylist Earl Jones about the Purple Rain era.
Jones divulges in the book that Prince had to reshoot a few scenes after the filming wrapped, but he had already cut his hair and bleached it blonde, necessitating a wig to match his signature glorious curly locks. Prince's hair had been totally fried, and he was recovering from the fallout. Jones shared that this lasted beyond the reshoots by adding, "The hairstyle in Raspberry Beret was literally all I could do with it."
Let's not forget the rest of his unforgettable look. Costume designer Marie France aimed to capture Prince's eclectic style, blending rock, funk, and a bit of androgyny. Of course, the most memorable of all his costumes was the purple trench coat with the studded right shoulder and white ruffled shirt, which became a synonymous symbol of Prince's image. The outfit was collectively designed by Louis Wells, Vaughn Terry, and Marie France and now lives at the Minnesota History Center.
In an interview with Billboard magazine, Louis Wells shared about working with Prince to design the look, "He told me he would call it Purple Rain because purple was the color of royalty, and he thought of himself as musical majesty. And he was, I chose this fabric because it was attention-grabbing, And a trench because he loved the drama and fit. You never knew what it would reveal when it blew open. It was a mixture of romanticism and punk, encompassing multiple genres, just like his music. He wasn't afraid to challenge stereotypes or gender biases. He knew if he wore it, it would be great. This cut — a cropped leather waistcoat — was inspired by James Brown, whom he loved and admired."
Costume Designer Marie France shared a little more on their process with Prince and the lasting impact during the Academy panel back in 2016:
A Star is Born: Apollonia Kotero
The film introduced Prince as an actor, but it introduced the world to Apollonia Kotero, a former lingerie model and musician famously dating David Lee Roth at the time. Before Apollonia, Vanity, the lead singer of Vanity 6 and Prince's OG muse and girlfriend was initially cast in the role, but due to them having a creative falling out and ultimately breaking up, he was left searching for a new love interest. At one point, Jennifer Beals was offered the role but passed. Apollonia was the last tape to be seen by Prince, and she instantly captivated him.
In this clip from OWN's Where Are They Now? Apollonia remembers her callback with Prince and the decades of love and friendship they shared:
Their undeniable chemistry made for an unforgettable performance. Apollonia inspired an entire generation of admirers and girls dedicated to recreating her perfectly curled teased hair, lace ensembles, and berry-toned hues. Plus, she had me fantasizing about hopping onto someone's motorcycle and looking as effortlessly cool as she did. Thank god I was too young to get anywhere near one, but her coolness hypnotized me.
Man... I don't know! Life’s a bitch.
I could go on and on about all this film's fascinating corners and tidbits, but let's go back to the start, where it all began with the opening scene.
I feel like Prince intended Let's Go Crazy to serve as a revolving celebration and eulogy for his life, and I always go back to this song and the music video as a pick-me-up. Whether putting on makeup in the mirror, transforming for the day, or rediscovering the wonder in performance and creation. The film opens and ends much like Prince's real life did. It's still hard to imagine a world without Prince, but his life and visionary continue to inspire and are cause for celebration. Purple Rain, in particular, is a time capsule that perfectly represents the era yet remains timeless, ready to be reinterpreted generation after generation.
When we set out to put together this piece on Purple Rain, it was so exciting to dive into how much more layered and nuanced the film is. Plus, listening to the soundtrack all day is already my favorite pastime. 40 years onward, the magic and message only get better with age, much like this thing we call life.
Some of my favorite PRINCE things.
and some other people’s creations.
One last treat for you all… I know most fans have seen this, but in case you haven’t, and for those who are just beginning their Prince dives, Here is footage of the Purple Rain Premier.