12 Surprising Facts About Prince That You Probably Didn’t Know

Yes, we know he was an amazing singer and songwriter, and the weird symbol he went by for a while was called “Love Symbol #2.” But did you know thse 12 facts about him?

MORE: Prince’s ‘Purple Rain’ is being turned into Broadway musical

1. He Wrote A Lot Of Songs For Other Artists

Remember Sinead O’Connor and her hit, “Nothing Compares 2 You?” Prince wrote it. He also wrote hits like “Nasty Girl” (Vanity 6), “Stand Back” (Stevie Knicks), “Manic Monday” (The Bangles), “Round and Round” (Tevin Campbell) and “I Feel for You” (Chaka Khan).

2. His Music Inspired The Explicit Ratings System On Albums Today

Ex-wife of former vice president, Al Gore, Tipper purchased the Purple Rain CD for her then 11-year old daughter. When she heard the graphic lyrics of “Darling Nikki,” she was infuriated.

In 1985, the Parents Music Resource Center was founded to help parents be informed of albums that might contain content like explicit language and violence. Not appropriate for young ears, this was the birth of “clean albums.”

3. His Name Really Was “Prince”

His full name was Prince Rogers Nelson. But he had many nicknames, including, The Kid, Aledanxer Nevermind, and Skipper.

4. His Name Has A Unique Story

Prince’s father, John, was a jazz musician in a group called The Prince Rogers Trio; his stage name was Prince Rogers. When born, his dad decided to pass along the legacy and name his son Prince. According to the Hollywood Reporter, in a 1991 interview, his father said, “I named my son Prince because I wanted him to do everything I wanted to do.”

5. His Father Was Not Violent, As Portrayed In The Film, “Purple Rain”

According to City Pages, “Prince’s father was not a gun-toting maniac as portrayed in the film Purple Rain. Prince said his father never swore, never drank, and that he always thought his dad was cool.”

6. He Was #1 For Album, Film, And Single All In The Same Week

His song, “When Doves Cry,” movie, “Purple Rain,” and the album’s soundtrack all topped the charts at #1 on the week of July 27th, 1984, reports The New York Times.

7. He Played Guitar In 3 Of Madonna’s Songs

Specifically, on her “Like A Prayer” album. The three songs were: “Like a Prayer”, “Keep It Together”, and “Act of Contrition”

8. He Supposedly Has Thousands Of Unreleased Songs

Maybe it’s a myth, but it has me excited. Brent Fischer, a composer that has collaborated with Prince, tells the BBC, “I think over 70% of the music we’ve worked on for Prince is yet to be released.” So is there really a secret vault of music? Only time will tell.

9. He Loved Spaghetti

Spaghetti, specifically paired with orange juice was one of his favorite meals.

10. He Also (Unapologetically) Loved Dunkaroos

According to Delish, the icon once told Heavy Table, “Don’t know what 2 say about Dunk-a-roos…They’re just good! Sometimes you want a food that is comfortable and takes you back. For me, it’s those crazy little kangaroo crackers.”

11. There Is A “Wikipedia” Spin-Off For Fans

Originally called Princepedia, fans created the site to commemorate all his accomplishments. The site has been renamed to Princevault.org, but when visiting it today, the site seemed to be down. Here’s the Facebook page tied to the website.

12. He Took A Tip From “Willy Wonka”

In Prince’s 2006 album, 3121, Universal hid 14 purple tickets. 7 of those albums were sold in the US and 7 were sold internationally. Lucky purchasers of the albums were invited to a special performance at his home in LA.

Photo by PeterTea