Prince Vs Michael Jackson

[Alex]

Now during the 1980s these guys (more specifically their fans) were battling to see who was the more dominant superstar.

Now who do you personally prefer as a music artist/who do you prefer listening to. Obviously if we're going by record sales Michael Jackson wins hands down. But Prince was no slouch in the hit making department, heck he made an entire film to promote his Purple Rain album.

Now this is a tough one for me as I enjoy both guys very much. A few years ago I would definitely have said Michael Jackson, but after listening to Prince regularly I've come to realise he's more diverse than Michael (to me) also he writes everything by himself, whereas Michael Jackson would work with other songwriters. Also I dig that Prince plays every instrument himself (an influence on Trent Reznor)

 

[akrassikauda]

I'm going to go with Prince. I love MJ but let's face facts Prince was a musician. Prince could play every instrument and write his own songs. When you hear The Jackson's Tito,Jermain they where the musicians out of the family.

Prince is one of the most underrated musicians and showmen to ever grace a stage and when it came to controversy Prince was an innovator. The cut out pants that showed his ass cheeks the track Sexy Mutha Fucker then in a dispute with his record label changed his stage name too a symbol and people just referred to him ass the artist formally known as Prince.

The best performance by Prince I've ever seen was the Super Bowl. Purple Rain in the rain nuff said.

 

[Infinity]

Team Michael 'til I die. I never liked this comparison, because aside from their ambiguous femininity, they aren't really similar musicians at all.

 

[Starcaller_Nasath]

Even though Michael Jackson had the bigger hits, I think I'm gonna go with Prince. I've been enjoying his music a lot more lately than I have Michael Jackson's.

Sign O' The Times is one of my favorite albums, though I seem to have lost it.

 

[Larry]

I've been a Michael Jackson fan since I was born!!! When I was only 2 years old I was singing Bad and Smooth Criminal, I watched Moonwalker practically everyday, I had Michael Jackson posters on my wall, to this day I celebrate his entire catalog.

While I can't give the purple one any flack at all, Michael transcends everything and everyone. True, prince is more of a "musician". He writes his own stuff, plays instruments, he is quite a stage performer, and was a very very big pop icon of the 80's. Michael on the other hand is the total package performer. Don't be confused either, Michael can make music from scratch, he knows all the technical aspects of producing, how to write music himself which he has done time and time again. Michael just goes to the next level though. What he did to change EVERYTHING from dance and choreography, to music videos, to pop culture, fashion, live performances, the list goes on.... He was not only a child prodigy but an innovator as he got older. I love me some Prince, but Michael is the greatest of all time. There may be bands that get placed above him on all time lists like The Rolling Stones, The Beatles, Led Zepplin, but no solo artist has ever been what Michael was short of Elvis, and Michael went far beyond what Elvis accomplished. To me, there is no comparison. Michael Jackson is still King!

 

[George Steele's Barber]

Two of my all time favorites.

Just by going by their catalogs I have to say Michael. He was a bigger financial success than Prince for more than just his pop sounds and family friendly attitiude. His music was more entertaining and more fun. That's not to say Prince hasn't written and performed great songs, Michael just has some better songs. I love Purple Rain, 1999, Nothing Compares 2 U and Never Take the Place of Your Man but songs like Beat It, Bad, Thriller, PYT, The Way You Make Me Feel etc., were bigger hits and hold up enough to keep Prince a notch below Michael.

 

[Lowdown]

I gotta go with Mike here. Don't get me wrong, both Prince and Mike were at the heights of their careers through the entire 80's, although Prince had put out more albums during the decade. Now I wasn't a fan of their material during the 90's; a few hits I can listen to. But albums like Off the Wall and Thriller I can listen to from beginning to end, and I gotta throw in the late 70's/early 80's Jacksons albums like Destiny and Triumph. Mike's catalog was a little more listener accessible compared to Prince. But Prince was quite the innovator in his own right. I like the way he handled all the instrumentation for the first three Time albums (all classics), and probably his best work falls between Controversy and Purple Rain. Despite the hits and the Purple Rain film, he couldn't top Mike to me.

 

[Larry]

Now I wasn't a fan of their material during the 90's

I just thought I'd say if you like Michael Jackson's work in general you might peruse the stuff he did in the 90's and give it a second chance. There are some hidden gems on Dangerous, and History has a lot of good tracks if you just give them a chance and listen through. Sometimes I hear a song and the way it starts I don't care for it much, but then when it gets more in swing it turns into something really good that I otherwise would have overlooked.

Blood on the Dance Floor itself is a hidden gem of Michaels career that simply wasn't able to rise above all the public controversy he was involved in. The title track Blood on the Dance Floor will probably take you back to the "Bad" days really, and then there are several remixes on there of other songs he did which are all interesting takes on the songs themselves. If you move beyond to Invincible, that is a truly underrated classic album imho. He has some beautiful ballads on there and some very good upbeat tracks.

 

[DethMetal]

I'm a big metal guy, so I'm probably the last person who should chime in on this. But I gotta go with Prince. Michael Jackson was a performer, a showman, and a fantastic one at that. But when it comes to music, Prince was a composer. The man is a musician, and an underrated one at that.

[YOUTUBE]6SFNW5F8K9Y[/YOUTUBE]

Not taking anyway away from the late Michael Jackson, but Prince, in terms of being a musician, was better.

 

[Lowdown]

I just thought I'd say if you like Michael Jackson's work in general you might peruse the stuff he did in the 90's and give it a second chance. There are some hidden gems on Dangerous, and History has a lot of good tracks if you just give them a chance and listen through. Sometimes I hear a song and the way it starts I don't care for it much, but then when it gets more in swing it turns into something really good that I otherwise would have overlooked.

Blood on the Dance Floor itself is a hidden gem of Michaels career that simply wasn't able to rise above all the public controversy he was involved in. The title track Blood on the Dance Floor will probably take you back to the "Bad" days really, and then there are several remixes on there of other songs he did which are all interesting takes on the songs themselves. If you move beyond to Invincible, that is a truly underrated classic album imho. He has some beautiful ballads on there and some very good upbeat tracks.

Don't get me wrong. There was a few cuts on Dangerous that was alright. I like "Remember the Time" and "Jam", as well as "Who Is It". Can't stand "Black or White" and especially "Heal the World". "Earth Song", "Scream", and "This Time Around" were good tracks on HIStory. Only tracks from Blood on the Dancefloor was the title cut and Ghosts (the video was somewhat humorous). My chick at the time used to bump "Butterflies" constantly, but I did like "You Rock My World" and its video. But those cuts really didn't make me want to but the whole album. But I have said though that between Off the Wall and Thriller, the former is my favorite of the two, even though Thriller covered genres like rock, R&B, quiet storm, and dance.

 

[Starcaller_Nasath]

I'm a big metal guy, so I'm probably the last person who should chime in on this. But I gotta go with Prince. Michael Jackson was a performer, a showman, and a fantastic one at that. But when it comes to music, Prince was a composer. The man is a musician, and an underrated one at that.

[YOUTUBE]6SFNW5F8K9Y[/YOUTUBE]

Not taking anyway away from the late Michael Jackson, but Prince, in terms of being a musician, was better.

I love that someone posted this video. It's a favorite of mine.

I mean, what the fuck is Prince's connection with George Harrison? I don't understand why he was up there to begin with, but he showed he can definitely play. And that strut at the end? Holy shit, man!

 

[Hollywood Naitch]

I have to go with MJ on this, although you have got to appreciate how talented Prince is/was. The guy is a musical genius. Purple Rain blows my mind every time I hear it.

I just much prefer Michael's work, and as good of a showman as Prince is, Jacko is better. In my eyes, MJ is up there with Freddie Mercury as the greatest performer in history. From the iconic moonwalk, to the Thriller dance, to even the outfits he wore on stage and the vast array of classic tracks he has done he is an icon. Michael Jackson's music will still be getting new fans in 50 years time. He will be like Elvis, with armies of loyal fans who weren't even born when Jacko was in his prime.

How many other performers can boast a back catalogue with as many classic songs as Jackson? Billie Jean, Thriller, Smooth Criminal, Bad, Beat It, Nan in the Mirror, the list goes on.

My vote definitely has to go for Michael Jackson. He is one of greatest

Chamone!

 

[Dowdsy McDowds]

I'm in the Jackson camp on this, although Prince's cover of Joni Mitchell's 'A Case of You' is amongst my favourite all-time covers, which earns him a bit of a soft spot. That and the image of him playing basketball fully garbed in his purple finery against the Murphy brothers.

Jackson was in the music industry from a very young age and is perhaps the most successful breakaway star in history despite having been a part of an already very successful group. The Jackson 5 catalogue is not as vast as Michael's, but some of their songs remain great crowd-pleasers even today.

When MJ was at his prime, he was one of, if not, the greatest performers in any industry. Music wasn't half bad either.