Controversy (song)

1981 single by Prince

"Controversy"

1981 UK 7-inch single

Single by Prince
from the album  Controversy
B-side|

* 1981: "When You Were Mine"
* 1993: "The Future"
* "Glam Slam"
* "D.M.S.R."
* "Anotherloverholenyohead"
* "Paisley Park"
* "New Power Generation (Part II)"

Released| September 2, 1981
Genre|

* Rock[1]
* new wave[2]
* funk[2]

Length|

* 7:14 (album version)
* 3:39 (7-Inch edit)
* 6:06 (2004 release)

Label|

* Warner Bros. (original)
* NPG (2004 release)

Songwriter(s)| Prince
Producer(s)| Prince
Prince singles chronology
| "Gotta Stop (Messin' About)"
(1981)  | "Controversy"
(1981)  | "Sexuality"
(1981)

|
|

Music video
"Controversy" on YouTube
Prince (1993) singles chronology
| "Peach"
(1993)  | "Controversy"
(1993)  | "The Most Beautiful Girl In the World"
(1994)

|
|

Prince (2004) singles chronology
| "Days of Wild"
(2002)  | "Controversy (Live in Hawaii)"
(2004)  | "Musicology"
(2004)

|
|

"Controversy" is a song by American musician Prince, released in September 1981 by Warner Bros. as the lead single and title track to his fourth album (1981). The song was written and produced by him, and addresses speculation about Prince at the time such as his sexuality, gender, religion, and racial background, and how he could not understand the curiosity surrounding him. "Controversy" is considered Prince's breakthrough hit in Australia, where it peaked at number 15.[3] In the US, it peaked at numbers three and 70 on the US Billboard Soul Singles chart and Billboard Hot 100.[4] Also, along with the track, "Let's Work", "Controversy" was the first of seven number ones on the dance chart for Prince.[5] On November 29, 1993, in support of The Hits/The B-Sides, the song was once again released in the UK as a single, reaching number five on the UK Singles Chart in December 1993.[6]

## Composition

[edit]

The song has two main verses, a few choruses, with the title repeated throughout the track. Towards the middle he recites the Lord's Prayer in full, which fueled the fire for some to say the song was blasphemous. Toward the end is a repeating chant of "People call me rude / I wish we all were nude / I wish there was no black and white / I wish there were no rules." The song features a steady 4/4 drumbeat, synthesized bass, guitar, and keyboards. The song was backed with "When You Were Mine", from his previous album, Dirty Mind.

## Live in Hawaii

[edit]

"Controversy (Live in Hawaii)" is a digital single made available for sale on Prince's website on March 29, 2004. The single consists of a live performance of the song: "Controversy", recorded on tour in Hawaii in 2003. The track also saw a limited release as a CD single, only available as part of a Prince in Hawaii Gift Box, available from Prince's retail outlet.

## Legacy

[edit]

In 2022, Rolling Stone ranked "Controversy" number 19 in their list of the "200 Greatest Dance Songs of All Time".[7]

## Personnel

[edit]

Sourced from Benoît Clerc, Guitarcloud, Morris Day and David Ritz.[8][9][10]

* Prince – lead and backing vocals, Oberheim OB-X, Oberheim OB-SX, electric guitars, bass guitar, Pearl SY-1 Syncussion, handclaps; possible drums
* Lisa Coleman – backing vocals
* Morris Day – possible drums

## Charts

[edit]

### Weekly charts

[edit]

Weekly chart performance for "Controversy"  | Chart (1981–1982)  | Peak
position

|

Australia (Kent Music Report)[11][3] | 15
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[12] | 28
US Billboard Hot 100[13] | 70
US Hot Soul Singles (Billboard)[14] | 3
US Hot Dance Club Songs (Billboard)[15] | 1
1993 weekly chart performance for "Controversy"  Chart (1993)  | Peak
position

|

UK Singles (OCC)[16] | 5
UK Airplay (Music Week)[17] | 9
2016 weekly chart performance for "Controversy"  Chart (2016)  | Peak
position

|

France (SNEP)[18] | 52

### Year-end charts

[edit]

Year-end chart performance for "Controversy"  | Chart (1982)  | Position

|

Australia (Kent Music Report)[11] | 73

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Wood, Mikael (April 21, 2021). "All 85 Prince singles, ranked 4 u from worst 2 best". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 3, 2025.
2. ^ a b Stephen Thomas Erlewine (June 7, 2023). "Essential Prince: His greatest songs of all time, ranked". The A.V. Club. Retrieved June 13, 2025. "...echoing some of the pansexuality he essayed on "Controversy." Where he designed that New Wave funk anthem to be deliberately provocative..."
3. ^ a b Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
4. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 471.
5. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Hot Dance/Disco: 1974-2003. Record Research. p. 357.
6. ^ "controversy | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". Officialcharts.com. Retrieved October 17, 2016.
7. ^ Dolan, Jon; Lopez, Julyssa; Matos, Michaelangelo; Shaffer, Claire (July 22, 2022). "200 Greatest Dance Songs of All Time". Rolling Stone. Retrieved April 6, 2025.
8. ^ Clerc, Benoît (October 2022). Prince: All the Songs. Octopus. ISBN 9781784728816.
9. ^ "Controversy". guitarcloud.org. Retrieved April 30, 2023.
10. ^ Day, Morris; Ritz, David (2019). On Time: A Princely Life in Funk. Hachette Books. ISBN 9780306922206.
11. ^ a b "National Top 100 Singles for 1982". Kent Music Report. January 3, 1983. Retrieved January 22, 2023 – via Imgur.
12. ^ "Prince – Controversy" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved August 4, 2023.
13. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2013). Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles, 14th Edition: 1955-2012. Record Research. p. 677.
14. ^ "Prince Chart History: Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs". Billboard. Retrieved August 4, 2023.
15. ^ "Prince Chart History: Dance Club Songs". Billboard. Retrieved August 4, 2023.
16. ^ "Prince: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
17. ^ "The Airplay Chart" (PDF). Music Week. December 25, 1993. p. 28. Retrieved May 4, 2024.
18. ^ "Prince – Controversy" (in French). Le classement de singles. Retrieved August 4, 2023.

* v
* t
* e

Prince singles

1970s|

* "Soft and Wet"
* "Just as Long as We're Together"
* "I Wanna Be Your Lover"

1980s|

* "Why You Wanna Treat Me So Bad?"
* "Still Waiting"
* "Sexy Dancer"
* "Uptown"
* "Dirty Mind"
* "Do It All Night"
* "Gotta Stop (Messin' About)"
* "Controversy"
* "Let's Work"
* "Do Me, Baby"
* "1999"
* "Little Red Corvette"
* "Delirious"
* "Let's Pretend We're Married"
* "When Doves Cry"
* "Let's Go Crazy"
* "Purple Rain"
* "I Would Die 4 U"
* "Take Me with U"
* "Paisley Park"
* "Raspberry Beret"
* "Pop Life"
* "America"
* "Kiss"
* "Mountains"
* "Anotherloverholenyohead"
* "Girls & Boys"
* "Sign "O" the Times"
* "If I Was Your Girlfriend"
* "U Got the Look"
* "I Could Never Take the Place of Your Man"
* "Alphabet St."
* "Glam Slam"
* "I Wish U Heaven"
* "Batdance"
* "Partyman"
* "The Arms of Orion"
* "Scandalous!"

1990s|

* "The Future"
* "Thieves in the Temple"
* "New Power Generation"
* "Gett Off"
* "Cream"
* "Diamonds and Pearls"
* "Money Don't Matter 2 Night"
* "Insatiable"
* "Thunder"
* "Sexy MF"
* "My Name Is Prince"
* "7"
* "Damn U"
* "The Morning Papers"
* "Pink Cashmere"
* "Nothing Compares 2 U"
* "Peach"
* "The Most Beautiful Girl in the World"
* "Letitgo"
* "Space"
* "Purple Medley"
* "I Hate U"
* "Gold"
* "Dinner with Delores"
* "Betcha by Golly Wow!"
* "The Holy River"
* "The Truth"
* "The Greatest Romance Ever Sold"

2000s|

* "U Make My Sun Shine" (with Angie Stone)
* "When Will We B Paid?" (with Audio Stepchild)
* "Supercute"
* "The Work, pt. 1"
* "Days of Wild"
* "Controversy (Live in Hawaii)"
* "Musicology"
* "Cinnamon Girl"
* "S.S.T."
* "Te Amo Corazón"
* "Black Sweat"
* "Fury"
* "Guitar"
* "F.U.N.K."
* "Dance 4 Me"

2010s|

* "Rocknroll Loveaffair"
* "Breakfast Can Wait"
* "Fallinlove2nite"
* "Breakdown"
* "This Could B Us"
* "Free Urself"

Promotional singles|

* "When You Were Mine"
* "Erotic City"
* "Nothing Compares 2 U"
* "Love Sign" (with Nona Gaye)
* "Somebody's Somebody"
* "It's About That Walk"
* "Call My Name"
* "The Song of the Heart"

Internet downloads|

* "Guitar (original "demo" version)"

New Power Generation|

* "Get Wild"
* "The War"
* "Come On"

EPs|

* The Beautiful Experience
* NYC
* 1999: The New Master

Other songs|

* "I Feel for You"
* "Partyup"
* "Private Joy"
* "International Lover"
* "How Come U Don't Call Me Anymore?"
* "The Beautiful Ones"
* "Computer Blue"
* "Darling Nikki"
* "Baby I'm a Star"
* "17 Days"
* "Around the World in a Day"
* "Sometimes It Snows in April"
* "The Ballad of Dorothy Parker"
* "Starfish and Coffee"
* "Adore"
* "Don't Talk 2 Strangers"
* "I Can't Make U Love Me"
* "La, La, La Means I Love U"
* "One of Us"
* "Everyday Is a Winding Road"
* "A Case of U"
* "Crimson and Clover"
* "Moonbeam Levels"

Authority control databases |

* MusicBrainz work
* MusicBrainz release group

|

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