Prince brings the funk to SXSW

Posted on 17 March 2013
By Jo Ching
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Prince closed the SXSW Music Festival in inimitable style with his 12-piece brass band.

Prince said: “They called our people and said they wanted some funk in Austin” before belting out the last bars of a gentle rendition of Purple Rain.

A 12-piece brass band joined the latest incarnation of Prince’s New Power Generation for hits like 1999 and Cool.

The show opened with the band making a Mardi Gras-style march onto the stage, which was drowned out by the sound of the crowd’s cheers upon the sight of Prince emerging in a magenta high-collared shirt and black blazer.

Prince banned cell phones and taking pictures at the Samsung-sponsored festival. Fans who flaunted the rule were scolded by security or told to scram.

The Purple One covered Curtis Mayfield’s We’re a Winner and Michael Jackson’s Don’t Stop Until You Get Enough.

“I love being a musician,” the 54-year-old music legend said. “It feels like being a servant. A servant to you.”

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