There are many reasons to love Minnesota. Museeum loves Minnesota for some finest art museums such as Weisman Art Museum and Walker Art Centre. We also love Minnesota for its musical heritage and, of course, for Prince!
If you love Prince as much as we do, then you probably know this lyrics: “The girl on the seesaw is laughing 4 love is the color This place imparts (Paisley Park) Admission is easy, just say U Believe and come 2 this Place in your heart Paisley Park is in your heart…”
Prince was signing about an actual place in Chanhassen, a music studio Paisley’s Park where the singer recorded his finest music albums and threw performances and parties. Paisley Park is not a museum in its conventional sense. Rather, it was envisioned as a production and design studio, music studio, art and design space. In 2017 Paisley Park is hosting one of the largest events to date to celebrate the legacy of Prince. It also marks the first anniversary of the artist’s death. In the light of this event, we talked with Paisley Park team, and learned why everyone who admires Prince should go to Minnesota.
Please tell us about the guided tour. How long is it? What can a visitor expect to see? "We have two guided tour experiences available to offer to Prince’s fans.General Admission tours last approximately 70 minutes total, and V.I.P. tours last an average of 100 minutes total. Throughout both tour experiences, visitors see artifacts from Prince's personal archives, including iconic concert wardrobe pieces, awards, musical instruments, recording studios, Prince's massive soundstage and concert hall, and his private NPG Music Club. The V.I.P. tour experience offers a 30-minute longer tour, additional rooms and studio areas, a unique photo opportunity, and even an opportunity to record live vocals over a short segment of a Prince song in his legendary Studio B. Additionally, on Friday and Saturday evenings, guests are welcomed into the "Paisley Park After Dark" experience, in the tradition of the celebrated Paisley Park After Dark events hosted by Prince through the years. On Fridays, at the conclusion of their tour, guests can partake in a dance party with a DJ in Prince's private NPG Music Club. On Saturdays, at the conclusion of their tour, guests can watch Prince movies and exclusive, rare concert footage at the Paisley Park Soundstage. Different movies and videos are shown each week. Also, VIP ticket holders on Sundays, will enjoy a special meal in the NPG Music Club, featuring Prince music, videos and many of his favorite foods. This is included as part of the VIP tour ticket".
In the Purple Rain exhibit visitors to Paisley Park find memorabilia from the #1 movie and 13x platinum album that spent 27 weeks at #1 on the Billboard Charts. Prince truly was a triple champion with Purple Rain, earning him the rare accomplishment of having the #1 movie, album and song simultaneously. This exhibit space showcases the Academy Award Oscar statue Prince won for Best Original Song Score, Prince's personal script, one of the motorcycles featured in the film along with wardrobe worn by Prince.
"The Paisley Park Museum is off to a great start! Thousands of visitors have already walked through our doors since opening in October of 2016. Prince's artistry wielded an incredible breadth of influence, as evidenced by the number of people from around the world that have visited Paisley Park to celebrate his legacy. Prince was arguably the greatest musical talent of his generation, and for many individuals, visiting Paisley Park in person helps place all of his musical and social contributions into perspective".
Who is your average visitor? "Visitors to the Paisley Park Museum are just as diverse as those who attended Prince concerts. His unique and gifted artistry has always garnered tremendous broadbase appeal, and therefore, makes it difficult to pinpoint and average visitor. Though Prince enthusiasts, and fans of music in general, take special interest in visiting Paisley Park, it has also been inspiring to see visitors new to Prince's world learn more about his life and legacy while at the museum. When you take a tour of Paisley Park, you see first hand what it was like for Prince to produce, create, and perform in his own private sanctuary; by exploring Prince's life and work, all guests walk away with a far greater understanding of what he accomplished throughout his illustrious 38+ year career in music".
"Paisley Park now exists as a tribute to Prince's legacy. We often hear about the spectrum of emotions our guests experience while visiting Prince's extraordinary private estate and production complex. He had an incredible ability to make countless people happy through his music, live performances, and social contributions. When you visit Paisley Park, you find yourself surrounded by the remarkable world Prince created, and consequently, face to face with the reality of a loss that came entirely too soon. Many Prince enthusiasts have mentioned that visiting Paisley Park is an important step in measuring their own personal loss as it relates to Prince. At the Paisley Park Museum, we look forward to continuing to promote, protect, and preserve Prince's legacy for people to appreciate and enjoy for generations to come".
Prince has and will always be a legend. Finally, there is a place to celebrate his life and art.
