Formerly shy, evasive artists Prince and Bob Dylan have been unusually public of late, giving longer, more revealing interviews to promote their latest albums. The first part of Prince’s two-night interview with PBS’ Tavis Smiley aired last night and the Purple One was very forthcoming, due in part to his close friendship with Smiley.
At one point, Prince even revealed his past medical problems. “I’ve never spoken about this before but I was born epileptic,” he said. “I used to have seizures when I was young. My mother and father didn’t know what to do or how to handle it but they did the best they could with what little they had.”
Prince also tackles issues about music critics, saying that he appreciates constructive criticism, but is hurt by reviews from critics that he feels have a malicious intent. At one point, he namedrops Miles Davis as a former friend whose criticism he appreciated. Well, I think anyone would rather hear what Miles has to say than someone like Jim DeRogatis.
The second part of Tavis Smiley’s interview with Prince airs tonight on PBS. Watch last night’s full interview here.