After TAFKAP left Warner Brothers, he continued in the music industry with NPG Records, his own record company since 1993. In the following years he pumped out albums such as, "Emancipation" (1996), "Crystal Ball" (1997), and "Rave Un2 the Joy Fantastic" (1999), all of which received a lucrative number in sales. Following this turn of events, Prince decided to focus on his loyal fans and around the year 2000 reinstated himself as Prince and celebrated by releasing "The Very Best of Prince" into mix in July 2001. Listed on an internet subscription service, NPGMusicClub.com, Prince decided to contribute other works like "One Nite Alone" (2002) , "Xpectation" (2003), and "N.E.W.S" (2003) on the service as well.
By 2004, Prince was nominated for a Grammy under the category of Best Pop Instrumental Album for his work on the "N.E.W.S" album. Later on in March, he was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. On the tail end of this victory, Prince joined Columbia Records and released his album, "Musicology", on April 20, 2004. Within a month it became Gold and later on double Platinum in 2005. Earning him 5 nominations at that year's Grammy Awards and went home with 2, under the categories of Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance and Best R&B Male Vocal Performance.
Transitioning back into the mainstream music industry, March 21, 2006 cued the arrival of "3121" and was the first album in 17 years to become number one on The Billboard 200 and Top R&B/Hip-Hop Album charts. Selling 183,000 copies in its first week of its launch. Not even one year later, Prince put out a double CD album, the "Ultimate" in August 2006, containing a CD with previous hits and the other with extended versions and mixes of material previously only on vinyl. To wrap up the year Prince, established a nightclub in Las Vegas in the Rio All Suite Hotel and Casino, where he performed every Friday and Saturday night up until April 2007, when his contract with the Rio dissolved.
On June 28, 2007 Prince's new album, "Planet Earth", was given away for free along with a U.K. national newspaper called The Mail on Sunday, becoming the first place to have access to the album. This sparked controversy within the music industry that it might worsen the state of record sales in the U.K. which were already suffering a decline in sales at the time.
About two years after the controversy, Prince released a triple album containing "LOtUSPLOW3R", "MPLSoUND", and an album called "Elixer" which is to be credited to Prince's protege, Bria Valente. With its release, the album peaked at #2 on the Billboard 200 and created mixed and positive reviews from critics.
Overall, Prince has been contributing to the music scene for over thirty years and seems to have no intentions of slowing down.
By 2004, Prince was nominated for a Grammy under the category of Best Pop Instrumental Album for his work on the "N.E.W.S" album. Later on in March, he was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. On the tail end of this victory, Prince joined Columbia Records and released his album, "Musicology", on April 20, 2004. Within a month it became Gold and later on double Platinum in 2005. Earning him 5 nominations at that year's Grammy Awards and went home with 2, under the categories of Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance and Best R&B Male Vocal Performance.
Transitioning back into the mainstream music industry, March 21, 2006 cued the arrival of "3121" and was the first album in 17 years to become number one on The Billboard 200 and Top R&B/Hip-Hop Album charts. Selling 183,000 copies in its first week of its launch. Not even one year later, Prince put out a double CD album, the "Ultimate" in August 2006, containing a CD with previous hits and the other with extended versions and mixes of material previously only on vinyl. To wrap up the year Prince, established a nightclub in Las Vegas in the Rio All Suite Hotel and Casino, where he performed every Friday and Saturday night up until April 2007, when his contract with the Rio dissolved.
On June 28, 2007 Prince's new album, "Planet Earth", was given away for free along with a U.K. national newspaper called The Mail on Sunday, becoming the first place to have access to the album. This sparked controversy within the music industry that it might worsen the state of record sales in the U.K. which were already suffering a decline in sales at the time.
About two years after the controversy, Prince released a triple album containing "LOtUSPLOW3R", "MPLSoUND", and an album called "Elixer" which is to be credited to Prince's protege, Bria Valente. With its release, the album peaked at #2 on the Billboard 200 and created mixed and positive reviews from critics.
Overall, Prince has been contributing to the music scene for over thirty years and seems to have no intentions of slowing down.
