#thank u to the mind blowing sex i had for motivating me to finish this xx

[blakeprentiss]

heating up in here

hotchniss alaska au

warnings: smut, case talk, the usual

a/n: this got looooong oops ! for the sake of the story we’re pretending they weren’t matchy matchy and that she is in fact wearing his sweater

(gifs by @aaronwhorechner )

**

“i’m not sleeping with reid.”

emily stifled a laugh, watching as penelope instantly claimed dibs on sharing with morgan.

“come on, spence, we can share.” jj spoke, placing an arm around the young agent to turn him towards the stairs. and then there were three.

rossi wordlessly looked between emily and aaron before sticking his hand out for a key. 4 rooms, 7 people; the math wasn’t hard, there was one single room. and dave knew he had it to himself.

“guess it’s you and me tonight,” hotch said, picking up his bag and making his way towards the room. emily followed in tow, doing her best to keep up.

“you think they have heat?” she asked as she trailed behind, arms rubbing against herself as best she could to keep warm. emily was a cold woman. not emotionally, well, not anymore, but physically cold almost all of the time. needless to say, she was not doing too well in the alaskan weather.

“let’s hope,” hotch said, stopping at the hotel room door. he unlocked the lock, taking a little longer than emily pleased.

“what, did you forget how to open a door?” she teased.

“it’s an old hotel, prentiss,” hotch sighed, finally pushing the door open. “the lock probably hasn’t been changed in decades.” he walked in, flicking on the light and stopping in his tracks. which, naturally, caused emily to walk straight into his backside.

“ow, hotch!” emily yelped, her hand reaching for his shoulder to steady herself. she was about to ask why the hell he stopped walking two steps into the room when she noticed what caught his attention: the lone, king-sized bed in the middle of the room.

“you can have it,” hotch said, moving in further and digging clothes out of his go-bag. “you get cold.” emily rolled her eyes, grabbing her own pajamas from her bag.

“don’t be stupid, there’s no couch and you’ll kill your back laying on the floor every night.” she reasoned, watching him make his way to the bathroom. “we’re adults, we’ll be fine.”

“yeah,” she heard hotch call as he shut the door. emily dug through her go-bag, grabbing her pajamas and groaning. the case had been called in hours after they returned from their previous one, meaning she hadn’t had time to properly pack her bag. which meant she had no sweatshirt. sighing, she threw on her sweats and t-shirt and waited for hotch to be done in the bathroom.

he walked out moments later, breath catching in his throat when he caught sight of emily. his eyes flitted down to her chest, nipples visible through the fabric of her shirt. clearing his throat, he looked back up at her and spoke. “no sweatshirt?”

“forgot to pack one,” she mumbled, walking into the bathroom and closing the door. splashing water onto her face, emily sighed as she resigned herself to sharing a bed with her boss. her very attractive boss, no less.

stepping out, her eyes landed on hotch, sitting in bed looking over the case file. he looked up, eyes meeting hers momentarily before reaching behind him. “here,” he said, tossing his brown quarter-zip sweater towards her. “it’ll keep you warm tonight.”

emily smiled gratefully, pulling on the warm fabric and watching it pool around her arms. “thank you,” she mumbled softly, climbing into the bed next to him. “goodnight hotch.”

“goodnight prentiss,” hotch replied, taking a moment to look at her before shutting the light off. god, she looked so good in his sweater. he laid there for a moment, the darkness and silence of the room really putting into perspective his situation. he was sharing a bed with his subordinate, arguably his most attractive one, in the middle of alaska. truly not how hotch had expected his day to end.

emily, meanwhile, had the same thought about her boss looming in the back of her mind. however, she couldn’t bear to focus on that, instead channeling all of her energy into not shivering. as warm as hotch’s sweater was - and fuck, it was warm - she was still freezing. arms wrapped around herself, doing her best to not hog the covers, emily tried her hardest to keep warm and still.

it was no use though, hotch could feel her body twitching every so often. plus, her teeth were chattering so frequently that he thought they would chip. he debated for a moment whether he should sacrifice his own warmth and give her the blanket, or cross the line and give her his embrace. and as much as he wanted to just give her the blanket, he didn’t want to be cold either.

she felt the bed dip first, feeling hotch roll to his other side. then, she felt the warmth encapsulate her body as his arm wrapped against her. finally, she felt his body directly against her back as he pulled her flush to him. oh. she was definitely warm now. their close proximity meant that when he whispered to her, his words went straight to her ear, hot breath tickling her skin. “think you can sleep now?”

no. absolutely not. “yeah,” she whispered back, making a feeble attempt to relax her body and find a comfortable position. instead, however, she found her ass pressed directly against him. she was sure her skin was fucking boiling at this point, cursing herself internally for even moving half an inch. she felt hotch breathing heavily against her, and all she could do was pray he was asleep and close her eyes.

he was not asleep, instead focusing everything on trying not to get rock hard against emily’s ass. unfortunately for hotch, no amount of steady breathing could stop his dick from growing harder. feeling the sudden warmth on her ass, emily smirked to herself. “think you’ll be able to sleep now?” she whispered, stifling a giggle.

“emily,” hotch groaned, his tone somewhere between a moan and a warning. keeping her lower body in place, she turned her head around to meet hotch’s eyes. the smirk fell from her face when she was met with nothing but lust from the man in front of her. gasping, she felt hotch’s hand wrap around her waist, snaking its way up bottom of the sweater.

“aaron,” she whispered, a moan catching in her throat. her free arm wrapped around his neck, fingers tangling in his hair as she pulled him closer. she could feel his breath on her lips, inches away from making contact with her own.

and that’s when they heard a scream.

***

“his name’s craig ramey. fisherman.”

the team gathered around the latest victim, all clad in their pajamas and jackets. as the discussion about the unsub’s accelerated schedule picked up, emily’s attention only strayed further. she could practically feel hotch’s eyes boring into her cheek, and if she was still enough, she could almost feel his breath on her skin.

aaron was doing all he could to maintain his professional manner in this moment, but all thoughts led him back to emily. he forced his eyes on the victim in front, around the team, at the cops, but they always found their way back to her.

“it’s still late,” hotch spoke suddenly, clearing his voice. “i’m sure none of us got much sleep, why don’t we all take a couple hours to rest and get ready for the morning?” it wasn’t a question, and he knew there wouldn’t be any rest in his room.

the team trickled apart, each making their way back to their respective rooms. emily stopped at hers, waiting for aaron to make his way from back of the group. he opened the door, and when emily stepped inside it was only a matter of seconds before the door was locked and she was pressed against it.

“aaron,” she gasped, arms wrapping around his neck to stabilize herself. he looked into her eyes, pupils blow.

“what, sweetheart?” he asked, voice about a whisper.

“kiss me.”

and kiss her he did. lips against each other, breathy moans traveling from emily’s throat to aaron’s mouth. she could feel his stubble against her face, turning her on more than she already was. his hips pushed towards her, causing emily to gasp when she felt his cock press against her pulsing core. aaron pulled back, lips beginning to nip along her neck. one hand braced her hip against the wall, the other finding its way through her layers of clothing.

“look so fucking good in my sweater, baby,” he muttered, eliciting a moan from emily as he twisted her nipple. “gonna fuck you so good while you wear it.”

“aaron,” she whined, his name apparently being the only word her brain could form. she released one hand from his hair, bringing it down to fumble with his jeans. before she could even get them unbuttoned, however, he was pressing his hips forward, cock straining against her hand. “fuck,” she groaned. “need you so badly.”

“is that so?” he asked, emily practically feeling the smirk radiating off of him. “take me then.”

she didn’t need to be told twice. she had his pants and boxers dropped in seconds. eyes blowing wide at the size of his cock. emily sunk to her knees, taking her time to work him with her hand. “emily,” hotch moaned, almost as if it was a warning. it was then she wrapped her lips around him, moaning at the string of curses he muttered while she swirled her tongue around his tip. inch by inch, she took him in her mouth, jaw aching from the size of him. she bobbed back and forth, increasing speed ever so slowly and wrapping a hand around what couldn’t fit.

hotch looked down, pupils blown at the sight of emily beneath him. he let out a groan, even more turned on when he felt her gag around him. they locked eyes, emily watching his expressions as she moved back and forth. it became too much, then, hotch tapping her cheek twice as a sign to release.

“too good at that,” he murmured, thumb wiping away the stray tears that fell from her eyes. “would’ve cum if you kept going, and i’m saving that for when i’m inside you.”

it was emily’s turn to groan, which no sooner turned into a squeal as hotch swept her off her feet and placed her on the bed. true to his word, he removed all her clothing, save for his sweater. taking of the remnants of his clothes, aaron climbed on top of her and pressed two fingers to her lips. instinctively, she opened her mouth, sucking the digits nicely until he pulled back.

within seconds those same fingers delved into her wet, soaking cunt. emily moaned, to which aaron placed his free hand on top of her mouth. “can’t have you being too loud, can we?” she shook her head, mouth opening and closing against his palm as aaron’s pace picked up.

“aaron, oh my god,” emily whispered, nearly biting his palm to keep from screaming. he smiled, planing a kiss to her head as he added a third finger inside her. she groaned, head pushing away from his hand and dropping to his shoulder. “fuck, aaron, please,” she whined, feeling herself getting closer to the edge.

“come for me, baby,” he muttered in her ear, groaning softly as he felt her tip over the edge. “good girl, so good for me.” he fucked her through her orgasm until it was too much, emily removing his hand and panting into his chest.

“holy fuck,” she breathed, slowly catching her breath. she looked up at hotch, meeting his soft smile with one of her own.

“you okay?” he asked.

“yeah,” she said. “so okay.”

“good.” he didn’t waste a second before pushing her back onto the bed, spreading her legs as he followed and lined up inside her. she gasped, locking eyes with him.

“please,” she whispered, staring at his hard, leaking cock at the edge of her equally soaked cunt.

“oh god, emily,” he moaned, watching his dick disappear under his sweater and into her pussy. “so fucking tight, so fucking good.”

“aaron,” emily whine, relishing in how good the pain was as his dick stretched out her cunt. she didn’t even want time to adjust to his size, she needed him to fuck her. “move.”

he wasted no time, fucking her with a rapid pace. “oh, emily,” he moaned, a string of curses following under his breath. emily groaned at the sensation, his tip hitting her perfectly. aaron looked up and felt himself getting closer as he watched emily, her mouth agape as she bit back a whimper. “so good for me,” he said, leaning down to capture her lips in a kiss. “i’m so close.”

“inside,” she responded, no hesitation. “please.”

“of course,” he whispered, picking up the pace and moving impossibly faster. he felt emily’s orgasm before she did, her moans combined with the clenching around his cock pulling his own. he spilt into her, stilling as they came down from their high.

he pulled out, laying down next to emily and turning to look at her. she turned to him, a soft smile on her face that matched his. “what?” she asked.

“you’re beautiful,” he responded, pushing her grown-out bangs out of her face. “pretty girl.” she blushed as he planted a kiss to her cheek, pulling her into his arms.

“you’re not so bad yourself,” she spoke, her voice muffled against his chest. “can i keep the sweater?” she asked a moment later, feeling his chest vibrate with laughter.

“for the rest of the trip, sure.” he said. “i have others i can wear. but i want it back, that’s my favorite one.”

“yeah,” emily sighed. “me too.”

[funknrolll]

Celebrating Prince: discovering a timeless artist and his meaningful and impactful art. Part 1. From the 1970s to early 1990s

Hi music lovers, it has been a while since my last post. Today is an important day and as a fan of Prince and as I’m extremely passionate about his art, my tribute could surely not miss. Since this article is extremely long I decided to divide it into more than 1 big post and do a whole week celebrating this immense artist, his life and his meaningful and astonishing art. Additionally let me say that I began this article in summer 2019 and I managed to finish it just now and to be honest, it is a 20 thousand words article. With this said, I hope you enjoy this new format, I hope you guys enjoy this article and I hope it will make you reflect on how impactful and important was and still is Prince’s art.    

First, let me say that I have heard so many things about Prince’s artistry. Some comments came from uneducated people who did not even take a second of their lives to understand, and do research on his art. Hence, I think the time to shed some light on Prince’s art, has come (finally). I hope to help some of those people understand this artist better and to finally appreciate him the way he deserves. We owe Prince big time. Today’s music and musicians  owe Prince everything. Without him, many of the artists we listen to today, WOULD NOT BE EXISTING. As we all know, Prince loved to experiment with music, trying out new music genres, new styles, new harmonies, melodies, rhythms and so on. This is one of the factors that led this legend to create a unique, wide and broad vault. There are so many songs of his that I love so much and that I find relevant for this article. The ones I chose, are going to prove that Prince and his music did not just revolve around sex and sexuality, (even if the artist through his music took the topic to another whole level). Through the article, we will see that Prince was more than all that I mentioned above. He was an extraordinary human being, blessed with so many enormous talents, with a beautiful mind, a uniquely pure soul. A true gift of God. With this in mind, let us start this article.

Starting with For You and the self-titled album “Prince” lyrically speaking they both are centered on the bittersweet feeling of love. However, what strikes me every time I listen to these masterpieces is that Prince was only 19 when he produced them. Moreover, the artist was skilled enough to produce, write all the lyrics, play all the harmonies and melodies and therefore compose all the arrangements for the songs and eventually record everything in the studio. He was only 19 with already an enormous talent.

The next album I will tell you about is Controversy. Specifically, I will analyze two songs contained in the album, which are exactly the homonymous song Controversy and Ronnie Talk to Russia. Controversy was released in 1981 right after For you, Prince and Dirty Mind. This album is totally different from the previous three. Indeed, if we listen closely and attentively, we will discover that the dissimilarities lay in the sounds, melodies, lyrics, and intention with which this masterpiece was crafted. Speaking about the song Controversy, I find it extremely relevant and unique. Melodically and rhythmically, we can listen to a Prince who was enormously far from the Prince who produced and crafted I wanna be your lover and For you. Besides what I just mentioned, what I find hugely relevant about this masterpiece are the contents. Indeed, in this song, we can investigate how open-minded Prince was. The song was the product of the artist’s intelligence who took all the rumors and the fake news made against him and turned them into this song which not only was a smart clap back but it also hid an extremely deep meaning which lays in its bridge and is characterized by a spoken almost rapped part:

“ People call me rude, I wish we all were nude

I wish there was no black and white, I wish there were no rules

People call me rude, I wish we all were nude

I wish there was no black and white, I wish there were no rules

People call me rude, I wish we all were nude

I wish there was no black and white, I wish there were no rules

People call me rude, I wish we all were nude

I wish there was no black and white, I wish there were no rules “

The message Prince was delivering with this was  evident: it does not matter whether we’re straight or gay, black or white, female or male, we all should be one and we are all the same. In fact quoting the artist: “So life is just a game, we’re all just the same”. In my opinion, this song is such an anthem and a hymn of freedom, and through this masterpiece, Prince encourages each of us to be ourselves no matter what. Moreover, this masterpiece, I would say, was a predictor of Prince’s whole career, as from that moment on, through his music he had always delivered the message of freedom of mind, freedom of expression, freedom to be ourselves, and a message of love and unity. Another song that I find extremely relevant for this article is Ronnie Talk to Russia. As we can infer from the title, this track had social and political purposes. Indeed, the title refers to the 40th American President Ronald Regan. Through this song, we can see another side of the artist who was very much conscious and interested in social issues. Moreover, this song was written and composed in the 1980s which means it was in the middle of the Cold War between the United States and Russia and therefore the lyrics make even more sense. Prince with the extremely earnest masterpiece was encouraging the then-President of the United States of America, to open the dialogues with Russia before it had been too late. Indeed, as the artist sang:

“ Ronnie if you're dead before I get to meet ya

Before I get to meet ya

Before I get to meet ya

Ronnie if you're dead before I get to meet ya

Don't say I didn't warn ya

Ronnie talk to Russia before it's too late

Before it's too late

Before it's too late

Ronnie talk to Russia before it's too late

Before they blow up the world”

After Controversy, 1999 was released. One of my favorite songs on this album is Free, which is probably one of the most underrated in Prince’s vault. A true hymn of freedom. In my opinion, the lyrics of this masterpiece are quite self-explanatory. Basically, in this song Prince is encouraging each of us to be glad about our freedom. The kind of freedom, Prince is talking about, is the freedom of the mind which is something extremely important and that should never be taken for granted. Besides that, another of the topics contained in this masterpiece is the fugacity of life, or else that life is so short and we should never take it for granted nor should we waste it as it is something extremely precious that needs to be cherished. Moreover, this song is introduced by the beat of a heart and some steps. Perhaps the artist had a specific motivation to use these two characteristics to the point that he even used them in the song. In my opinion, Prince might have used the heartbeat to symbolize life and therefore our freedom and the fact that we should be happy for what we have which is our freedom and our life; because as Prince said, it is something some people do not have. This peculiarity is well connected to the lyrics, indeed as Prince sings:

“I know your heart is beating, my drummer tells me so

If U take your life 4 granted, your beating heart will go”

Additionally, as regards the steps used to introduce the song, this is the second detail that is exceedingly well related to the lyrics as Prince sang to be glad that we are free to go anywhere we want. Musically speaking, there is another peculiarity that makes this song even more relevant. Prince’s voice and performance are two of the major key points of this masterpiece. Indeed, in my opinion, without the proper execution of a talented artist, this song would have lost its impact and hence would have been less meaningful. The heartfelt, emotional and genuine performance the artist delivered is what makes the song even more credible, and therefore impactful. Additionally, what I find mesmerizing about Prince, is how he had always been able to create a connection with the listener through his music.

Jumping forward in time, in 1987 Prince released Sign ‘o’ the Times such a meaningful album. The album was released after Purple Rain (1984), Around the World in A Day (1985) and Parade (1986). In this masterpiece, Prince is delving into a wide range of different topics that shift from love, social issues, climate change, sex, death, new diseases, poverty, religion and so forth. Not only can we see Prince’s musical evolution in this masterpiece, but also how he was unraveling his true beautiful self as an artist and human being. There are three songs that I find extremely relevant for this article and these are the homonymous Sign ‘o the Times, Starfish and Coffee and The Cross.

Starting with Sign O the Times, this song begins with an extremely strong bassline which is entirely played by Prince like all the other instruments in this song are. Indeed, this is the first album that is not played by the Revolution. Hence Prince with this masterpiece is showing one more time his immense musical skills. Also, the instrumental part of this masterpiece is, I would say, extremely simple and neat. Indeed, a few instruments were used to craft the song. However, the arrangement is quite complex. In my opinion, Prince might have kept the instrumental part simple and neat to confer more importance to the lyrics. This was an extremely well thought and ingenious choice as thanks to it the artist is having his listener to put all their attention to the monumental lyrics of the song. As I mentioned, the lyric is the fulcrum of this song. In fact, through the eloquent, self-explanatory and skillfully written lyric, Prince is delivering such an important message. Through this work the artist is externalizing all his concerns about climate changes and social issues such as the appearance of aids, drug addiction, and poverty. The relevance of this song is still extremely actual, now more than ever. The second song I mentioned, Starfish and Coffee, is probably my favorite in this album. Perhaps because it deals with a topic that is close to my heart. According to the internet, this song was inspired by a real person. Indeed, according to Prince’s then-girlfriend, Susannah Melvoin, the song is about one of her classmates who was extremely peculiar and ignored by all her classmates except Susannah. Needless to say, that when Prince heard the story and asked for more details and eventually Starfish and Coffee was born. In addition to that, Prince then confirmed on the old website love4oneanother that this song is specifically about a little girl with special needs. Lyrically speaking also this song, is extremely eloquent. The artist’s sensitivity and gentle personal touch in telling this moving story and depicting the main character is what makes the song unique. Besides the touching story behind the song, the extremely peculiar arrangements and melodies would suggest a happy song dealing with a happy story, rather than a sad story. However, Prince might have opted for this specific arrangement either to allure the listener to pay attention to the song, or to ease a song that would have been too painful if it had had an arrangement coherent with the lyrics. The third song I mentioned is The Cross. This masterpiece probably holds the most hermetic meaning among all the songs on this album. Although the title would suggest the Cross symbolizing Jesus Christ, his name is never mentioned. Moreover,  the heartwarming and reassuring lyrics and the monumental, almost Beatles-like arrangement, are two of the major points of the song. Indeed, the song opens with a few instruments and then their number increase as the melodies build up and expand like a beautiful flower opening and showing its beautiful colors. The cherry on the top of the pie is the artist’s emotional and impressive performance that never ceases to give me chills. Last but not least, I don’t know if it is just me, but this song and the intention of the performance and the arrangements are giving me Beatles vibes.

Among all the albums produced, Music from Graffiti Bridge is perhaps one of my favorite by Prince. After Lovesexy (1988) and Batman Soundtrack (1989), the artist released the soundtrack of his third movie: Graffiti Bridge. (I really recommend this movie in case you have not seen it yet). This movie despite all the comments and criticisms it received, is, in my opinion, a masterpiece that delivers such a hugely important message. It is a pity that some people are not able to look beyond appearances to search for something deeper. The album boasts the presence of a special guest and music legend or else Dr. Funk, Uncle Funk aka George Clinton. Among the songs on this masterpiece, the most meaningful and relevant are New Power Generation, Elephants and Flowers,  and Still Would Stand All Time.

The first song I mentioned is New Power Generation. The message it delivers applies extremely well to music today. Indeed, the message Prince has always strived to send out through his music and life was that music’s most important and highest purpose is to change the world and people for the better. Therefore, artists should make efforts to create music with that specific aim. This lesson should be applied to music today as most of the artists today do not create music to inspire people but rather for their own advantage. Besides, the artistic and personal evolution of the singer is quite undeniable. The arrangement of the song vaunts the presence of some of Prince’s talented fellow artists such as Morris Day who skillfully executed the drumline and the beautiful singer Rosie Gaines who with her signature voice is performing the powerful background vocals. Additionally, with the soulful and expressive vocals, Prince gave proof of his skills using a good portion of his vocal extension and lastly giving proof of an extremely broad range of vocal techniques.

Another relevant song worth listening to is Elephants and Flowers. The song is perhaps one of the most spiritual on the album. The crystal-clear lyrics hide a deep meaning, lesson, and message of hope and love. In fact, through the metaphor of the Elephant and the flowers Prince is basically teaching that God created everything from something big as an Elephant to something as small as a flower. Hence, the lesson behind the metaphor is that God made us all and the prayers of those who believe in Him are not wasted in vain and He listens to them. Moreover, as in many of the artist’s songs, it could not be missed the implicit allusion to the afterworld which is being depicted as a beautiful place without sorrows, confusion, nor tears. Indeed as Prince sang:

Think I'm gonna fall in love tonight.

When I do, there won't be no more (confusion)

There won't be no more (no tears)

There won't be no more enemies, so that eliminates all the fear

And there won't be no sorrow, (sorrow)

There won't be no pain, (no pain)

There won't be no ball and no chain

Strip down, strip down, elephants and flowers.

Moreover, it is also important to pinpoint the instrumental part which is quite different from the artist’s previous works. The song is crafted with drums as the prevailing instrument followed by a skillfully played signature guitar solo. Although the relatively small number of instruments played, Prince has been able to craft an instrumental that sounds like a whole full orchestra. In my opinion, one of the reasons why the artist sometimes used a small number of instruments could be perhaps because he wanted to give importance to his vocals and the beautiful voices of the background singers. Another reason why might be that he wanted the audience to listen attentively to the lyrics. Moreover, another thing that I believe is of extreme importance, is that Prince played all the instruments in this masterpiece. Mind-blowing, isn’t it?

Another song that I find relevant is Still would Stand all Time. This was the last song played in the movie. Unlike all the other songs on the album, this one is different: firstly, because after 13 funk, rock, and pop songs, the artist decided to experiment with another music genre which is soul. Through some crystal-clear lyrics, the artist delivered a precise and straightforward message. There were no implicit messages, no inferring. Hence, the meaning is as simple as it gets: universal love, love for one another and the hope in a better world full of love, where people could finally join together, love each other, without dishonesty, anger, fear, jealousy, and greed. A world where people leave their pasts behind and join together against injustices. A world where no man will rule another man. This is basically the message Prince has lived up to his whole life. This message can be applied to today’s world and society, as we live in a world ruled by greed and anger and sorrow when instead we should be loving each other like brothers and sisters without hate, racism, greed. Unfortunately, we live in a world where we lost most of our humanity and kindness. Back to the song. Yet the peculiarity that makes the song monumental, besides the beautifully written lyrics is the instrumental. First of all, to make you understand better how brilliant Prince was, I need to say that in his song, the artist used a three-tone sampled flute from Prélude À L'Après-Midi D'Un Faune by Claude Debussy, from the cd Images For Orchestra. Besides the sampled flute, the vocal part is  another relevant peculiarity. Indeed, Prince is giving one of the most touching, expressive and heartfelt performances that gets straight to the heart and soul of the listener. Additionally, not only are these vocals a joy for our ears but the choir and Prince are using an extremely wide range of vocals techniques that show how musically educated the artist was. Indeed, at the very beginning of the song we can listen to Prince singing the first line of the song and the choir using the echo technique repeats Prince’s line. The echo technique is used almost throughout the entire song, except for two lines where the vocal technique used is the call& response. Indeed, the first line where the vocal technique I mentioned, is used is:

Oh, love, love, oh love if you would just please give us a sign

Still would stand all time

In these two lines, Prince is singing the first one and the choir responds with the chorus. Moreover, the other part where this technique is used is:

Love, love, it’s not that far away if we all say yes and give it a try

(Got to give it, a try, yes!) still would stand all time (I say still)

(so many times) so many times, I thought I could not make it

(still would stand all time)

The first line is performed by the choir to which Prince responds with “Got to give it a try, yes”. The chorus is performed by the choir and Prince responds with “I say still”. In the third line, Prince and the choir switch their parts and Prince sings the mainline and the choir responds. Despite the vocal parts are dominant in this song, the instrumental is also deserving recognition. First of all, it is important to notice Prince’s ability to craft an extremely complex arrangement. Moreover, what I find mesmerizing is how this brilliant artist could use a broad spectrum of harmonies and melodies and still make them work perfectly. Indeed, if you listen attentively, you would hear Debussy flutes from the Prelude in perfect harmony with the melodies played on the piano and the beats of the drums. As regards to the piano, we can listen to several different and difficult techniques used to craft this beautiful melody. Also, it is relevant to mention the fact that Prince played each instrument you hear in this masterpiece. Moreover, I do not know if it is just me but this kind of song makes me miss Prince more and more. He had this beautiful ability to connect with people through his music and therefore touch our heart in a way only a few artists have been capable of. This song is one of them. A total monumental masterpiece.

This was the first part of a series of articles dedicated to Prince to celebrate his life and most importantly his art. Stay tuned for more. In the meantime stay home, stay safe and healthy. Peace and Love 4 one another. G💜