The door-to-door devotion of Prince’s religion
Imagine the scene. You’re at home, and suddenly, there’s a knock on the door. You answer a classic Jehovah’s Witness cold call, but to your surprise, the man in front of you isn’t your typical churchgoer dedicating their free time to spreading the gospel. Instead, it’s a global music phenomenon known best for his own wild and provocative energy. At his whole five-foot-one height, holding a bible instead of a guitar, it’s Prince on your doorstep.
The history of Prince is a complex and fascinating one. In his 57 years on earth, it feels as if he lived a million lives. He was a genius-level talent, a virtuoso even, who proved his worth instantly when he played, wrote and produced every single note on his debut album across every instrument.
From then on, his career morphed and changed through several phases. He was a chameleon following wherever his vision took him, whether that be to the realm of chart-dominating pop stardom or more controversial corners. There was a moment when he changed his name to an unspeakable symbol, all to make a statement, or countless times when he used his lyricism to speak on social and political issues, putting whatever he was passionate about into song.
Within all of that, there is a wealth of paths to explore, from his musical stylings to his personal relationships. However, one of the most interesting things is his religious beliefs and the way his relationship with spirituality morphed and changed alongside him.
From his childhood, Prince was a believer. He once said of his youth and his early hopes for his life, “I wanted to be like my father, and I loved everything he loved — my mother, the Bible, and music.” At the start, those latter two morphed. God’s main place in Prince’s life seemed to be within his artistry, with religion often being used as a metaphor for love and devotion in songs like ‘I Would Die 4 U’ or in a secret message embedded into ‘Darling Nikki’. He later stepped it up a notch in 1981 when his track ‘Controversy’ included the entire Lord’s Prayer.
But throughout all this, Prince’s approach to religion was somewhat confusing. It was clear that God played some kind of role in the musician’s life, but when often brought up within more risque lyricism or in songs with explicit content, few people would ever think that the artist was anything close to a good and devout church boy.
However, in 2001, his position changed when he became a Jehovah’s Witness. After a long-term friendship with Sly and the Family Stones’ Larry Graham, Prince converted to his religion, but he wouldn’t phrase it like that. “I don’t see it really as a conversion,” Prince told the New Yorker in 2008, “More, you know, it’s a realisation. It’s like Morpheus and Neo in The Matrix.” Swept up in his new religion, he attended meetings and even got involved with the classic door-knocking, leaving his Paisley Park mansion to go door-to-door in his local community.
“Sometimes people act surprised, but mostly they’re really cool about it,” he said. It’s a funny image: the rockstar going from house to house, asking for a moment of their time to talk about God. But to Prince, it was serious stuff.
“I said, ‘You know what? You’ve walked into a Jewish household, and this is not something I’m interested in,’” a member of one local family remembered telling the musician. But Prince was dedicated. He was going to share his speech no matter what, remarking back to the family, “Can I just finish?”
Who knows if Prince pulled off any conversions, but going door to door alongside Larry Graham is certainly one way for a world-famous star to spend his time off.
