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After completing a short residency of concert performances on his Welcome 2 America Tour, Prince has decided to donate $1.5 million to 3 arts-oriented NYC schools. The Harlem Children’s Zone, Uptown Dance Academy and the American Ballet Theatre are the lucky organizations that will benefit from Prince‘s generosity.

I kept things pretty low key yesterday. After 5 straight nights out on the town last week and into the weekend, I decided I needed a day off. Waking up with a sore throat was not fun but I did manage to fend it off for the rest of the day (God Bless, Luden’s). Because I stayed home all day, I got caught up on some TV, watched a few movies and — of course — spun a few records.

Last night David and I met up with our beloved Gillian for dinner at The Counter in LA so that we could catch up and hang out with one another … while we stuffed our faces with delicious hamburgers. Hanging with Gillian is always a great time and we had a blast as usual. Afterward, we came home to relax … David in front of the TV, me in front of my turntable … so I decided to spend my night with Prince back in 1999.

It is that time of the year when I compile my list of favorite albums of the year … and what a diverse year of music it was. To be honest, I really wasn’t wowed by the music of 2010 until pretty late in the year. Some albums snuck up on me as one of the year’s faves, others surprised me entirely … and, of course, some were surefire loves as soon as they were released. Here is my list of the 10 Best Albums of 2010.

Yesterday afternoon, the Purple Yoda himself — Prince announced that he will be hittin’ the road on tour starting in December with a few friends. At the press conference announcement at the Apollo Theater in Harlem, NY, Prince announced that the tour will be called Welcome 2 America:

Surprisingly, the press conference announcement yesterday was pretty light on details … like tour dates and cities, but Prince did announce a very impressive list of opening acts. Check out some photos of Prince at yesterday’s tour announcement event and find out who will be hittin’ the road with his Purple Majesty on tour …

Prince may have just released his most recent album 20TEN for free in Europe this month but the purple one is already hard at work on his next batch of songs for release. Prince, a huge fan of Minnesota Public Radio station 89.3 The Current, invited a reporter from the station to his home at Paisley Park to preview not only his latest album 20TEN but a few new songs being worked on for his next album. Prince may have some funny ideas about the Internet but the man has not slowed in his prolificness for releasing new music:

“Isn’t the sky beautiful tonight?” asked Prince as he welcomed me warmly into his Paisley Park studio complex in Chanhassen on a warm May evening. Entering the famous sanctuary, I literally had no idea what was in store for me that night … I found myself being shown around by Prince himself, resplendent in white shoes, white pants, white shirt and looking in person 20 years younger than his age of 52. After checking my computer and cell phone at the door, Prince took me into Studio A and sat me in front of the big console and a ton of recording gear. “I’ve finished my next album, but first I want to play you some songs from the next record that I’ve been working on,” he said, as he cued up a gorgeous track with an epic chorus a la “Hey Jude” with Prince working the multi-track mix on the fly. Then he played me “Hot Summer,” the second song that The Current world debuted in June 2010. “I think this one has a B-52′s feel to it,” said Prince, as his ode to our precious short MN summers played loudly on the huge studio monitors. Just like any excited and nervous musician sharing his new music, he bounced around the studio, adjusting the mix and yelling ideas in my ear.

The article continues after the jump …

After musician Prince gave a very attention-grabbing interview to the British newspaper The Daily Mirror this week where he declared that the Internet is “completely over”, it is my unsurprising duty to report that Prince‘s new album 20TEN has been leaked in full to the undead Internet. But, the leak may not be as upsetting to Prince as you might think … especially when you consider that he is giving away the album for FREE in publications all across Europe beginning this weekend:

I still think it is very shortsighted and extremely silly for anyone to declare that the Internet is “over”, especially in terms of music making its way to the World Wide Web. But considering how quickly his new album made its way to the Internet before it has been released in England this weekend, I doubt this will endear Princeto the Internet at all. In case you are interested, you can check out the full tracklist for the newly available album 20TEN as well as a photo of Prince that has made its way to the Internet that Prince might not want you to see, after the jump …

Just last week we started hearing about a new Prince album titled 20TEN that is scheduled to be released for free in publications all across Europe in the coming weeks and today, in conjunction with that album release, we get to hear from Prince himself in a new interview with the British newspaper The Daily Mirror. In much the same way that Prince has been promoting his albums for the last few years, Prince invited the reporter into his home to spend the day with him in order to get a taste of Prince‘s life, ending with a sit down interview to cap off the experience. For the most part, this latest interview/experience with the Daily Mirror played out in the same way but it’s the quotes that Prince gave to the paper that are getting all the attention this time around. According to Prince, the Internet is “completely over” in an “outdated” way. Now, how could the man who released his last album online via a website that charged $77 for access and only a few years ago distributed his music EXCLUSIVELY on the Internet at NPGMusicClub.com say such a thing? Well, read on to find out:

Prince agreed to his first British newspaper interview for 10 years before his eagerly anticipated new album 20TEN which, in the biggest music giveaway of the year, will be released free in the UK only in the Daily Mirror this Saturday. The interview almost doesn’t happen. Then it’s on as long as I can meet him the very next day at his home town of Minneapolis in the US Midwest (and I’m ordered not to bring a camera, mobile phone or tape recorder) … “Hi,” he says, “I’m so glad you could come.” His voice is deeper than I expected, he’s certainly small (5ft 2in at most), looks almost half his age (52), and is dressed immaculately, if oddly, in white silk trousers, flouncy green silk shirt, an ivory tunic and white pumps (which, I suspect, are stacked). “You must come and listen to the album,” he says. “I hope you like it. It’s great that it will be free to readers of your newspaper. I really believe in finding new ways to distribute my music.” He explains that he decided the album will be released in CD format only in the Mirror. There’ll be no downloads anywhere in the world because of his ongoing battles against internet abuses. Unlike most other rock stars, he has banned YouTube and iTunes from using any of his music and has even closed down his own official website. He says: “The internet’s completely over. I don’t see why I should give my new music to iTunes or anyone else. They won’t pay me an advance for it and then they get angry when they can’t get it. The internet’s like MTV. At one time MTV was hip and suddenly it became outdated. Anyway, all these computers and digital gadgets are no good. They just fill your head with numbers and that can’t be good for you.”

While I love Prince‘s music more than most music I’ve ever heard in my life, I cannot help but shake my head at the silliness that the man spouts in his interviews these days. To be clear, the man is a musical genius … it’s when he goes into social commentary that he loses me. The full interview can be read HERE and it is chock full of religion (“young people, don’t have enough God in their lives”) but no commentary about his past (“I don’t talk about the past”) or about the late Michael Jackson (“Next question”). In recent years he has railed against You Tube and even his own fans who dare to use his image on any of their websites in much the same way that a crotchety old person might vehemently oppose something not quite understood. His assertion that the Internet is “over” is absolutely ridiculous … what he should say is that his involvement with the Internet is over. Prince is very lucky to live with the kind of wealth that affords him the luxury to give away his albums and to wage war with his own fans without fear of reprisal or financial ruin. While I love the man’s music, I do my best to steer clear of his opinions because it’s stuff like this “the Internet is over” bologna that just makes him look old, outdated and “over”.

Prince played a concert in Berlin, Germany yesterday where no interviews were given, no commentary was espoused and I understand it was a fantastic show. After the jump, check out some photos from his performance …

Last week we heard the great news that Prince will be releasing his next album, titled 20TEN, in the August issue of German Rolling Stone magazine and today we learn that the album will in fact be released for free in various publications all over Europe. France is the first country to release the album in the July 8th issue of Courrier International to be followed by releases in the UK, Germany and Belgium. Here is our first look at the album artwork for 20TEN and some deets about the album’s release:

Pop star Prince will be giving away his new album “20Ten” with newspapers in Europe. The “Purple Rain” singer, who released his 2007 album “Planet Earth” as a free CD with Britain’s Mail on Sunday newspaper, has teamed up with a handful of European publications to expand the idea in July – to coincide with planned concerts on the continent. Prince has joined forces with the publishers of the Daily Mirror and Daily Record in Britain for the CD giveaway, and more than 2.5 million copies of the album will be distributed. The German edition of Rolling Stone will also include “20Ten”, as well as Het Nieuwblad in Belgium. Each of the publications will also feature an extensive interview with the reclusive star.

I love that Prince is so wealthy that he doesn’t need to sell albums anymore, he just gives them away. I’m certain this album will be available for sale here in the US at some point but I am really looking forward to gettin’ my mitts on a copy when I get to Paris, France in a few weeks. At this point, we have no idea what any of the music on 20TEN will sound like but at least now we know for sure what the album art looks like. I’m excited … are you?

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Last night celebs of varying size and stature made their way to the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, CA to attend the 2010 BET Awards which are handed out annually since 2001 by Black Entertainment Television in order to celebrate African Americans and other minorities in music, acting, sports, and other fields of entertainment over the past year. In addition to the usual music, acting and sporting awards that were handed out, a loving tribute was paid to Prince who is this year’s recipient of the BET Lifetime Achievement Award. Here are a few photos from the show last night and some deets about what went down:

The BET Awards on Sunday were hosted by a Queen and honored a Prince, but it was a fallen star, Chris Brown, who surprised fans with a tearful tribute to the late King of Pop. Alicia Keys, Trey Songz, Nicki Minaj and current albums chart champ Drake were among the big winners at cable television network BET’s annual salute to R&B and hip-hop stars, while Diddy, Kanye West, Eminem and El DeBarge wowed the audience with their performances … The night’s top honor, BET’s viewers choice award, went to Rihanna and Young Jeezy for their song, “Hard.” Keys, who also performed a Prince song, took home two trophies for R&B female singer and best collaboration for smash hit, “Empire State of Mind,” sung with Jay-Z. Trey Songz, whose hits include “Can’t Help but Wait,” was named best R&B male singer. “I want to let you all know that anybody can be anything, all it takes is dedication and a lot of hard work,” Songz said. Canadian rapper Drake was named best male hip-hop artist, and Minaj took home the trophy for best female hip-hop singer. Beyonce and Lady Gaga earned video of the year honors for their collaboration “Video Phone,” but were not on hand to accept their trophy … Two days after the one-year anniversary of Michael Jackson’s death, Jermaine Jackson took the stage for the tribute to his brother and said, “everyone worldwide for the love shown us (his family) over the last year.” He then quoted what his sister, Janet Jackson, had said at last year’s BET Awards: “Michael’s a legend to you, but to me, he’s my brother.” He pointed upward and said, “Love you, Michael.” Among other highlights, former “Diff’rent Strokes” TV star Todd Bridges introduced a section on stars who had died in the past year, including his one-time co-star Gary Coleman. And John Legend was given a humanitarian award.

Overall the show was pretty entertaining but I could not for the life of me stomach Chris Brown and his ridiculous antics on stage. I do not for one second believe his sincerity at all. It really bothers me that so many people are willing to forgive and forget his crimes already … I do not. IMHO, it is an affront to have someone like Brown, convicted of and barely punished for brutally assaulting a woman he claimed to love, pay tribute to the memory of the late Michael Jackson. But … I refuse to give that loser any more attention than he deserves. The rest of the show was pretty good. I was most impressed by the tribute to Prince as this year’s recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award. After the jump, check out some photos of Prince at last night’s BET Awards and check out video from the show’s tribute to his stellar career …