Minneapolis, Prince, and the Minneapolis Sound

Prince was an artist who challenged many conventional notions of race, sexuality, and music. His music, characterized as the Minneapolis Sound, is a continuation and extension of America's indigenous music, the blues. This article is an explanation of the designation “Minneapolis Sound.” The first part establishes the Minneapolis milieu, specifically that of the black neighborhoods, and how it formed Prince and his cohort, such as James “Jimmy Jam” Harris Jr., Terry Lewis, André Cymone, Morris Day, and others. The second part is a close analysis of Prince's music and its sonic effects and how Prince engages and extends the blues idiom.