Emancipation (Prince album)

1996 studio album by Prince

Emancipation

Studio album by

Prince

Released| November 19, 1996
Recorded| January 1995 – October 1996
Genre|

* Pop
* funk
* R&B[1]

Length| 185:57
Label|

* NPG
* EMI

Producer| Prince
Prince chronology
| Chaos and Disorder
(1996)  | Emancipation
(1996)  | Crystal Ball / The Truth
(1998)

|
|

Singles from  Emancipation

1. "Slave"
Released: December 9, 1995 (US promo)
2. "Betcha by Golly Wow!"
Released: November 13, 1996
3. "The Holy River" / "Somebody's Somebody"
Released: January 13, 1997
4. "Somebody's Somebody"
Released: January 13, 1997

Emancipation is the nineteenth studio album by American recording artist Prince. It was released on November 19, 1996, by NPG Records and EMI Records as a triple album. The title refers to Prince's freedom from his contract with Warner Bros. Records after 18 years, with which he had a contentious relationship. The album was Prince's third to be released that year (along with Chaos and Disorder and the soundtrack album of the Spike Lee movie Girl 6), which made 1996 one of the most prolific years for material released by Prince.

## Overview

[edit]

Emancipation marked the first album in Prince's career to include cover versions of songs written by other songwriters. He said that he had wanted to cover songs in the past, but was advised against it by Warner Bros. Four such covers appeared on the album: "Betcha by Golly Wow!" (previously a hit for the Stylistics), "I Can't Make You Love Me" (previously a hit for Bonnie Raitt), "La-La (Means I Love You)" (previously a hit for the Delfonics) retitled "La, La, La Means I Love U", and "One of Us" (written by Eric Bazilian, and previously a hit for Joan Osborne). Notably, Prince changed the chorus of "One of Us" from "What if God was one of us / Just a slob like one of us" to "... Just a slave like one of us".[2]

The album is notable for its format: it consists of three discs, each containing 12 songs with exactly 60 minutes per disc. Prince insinuated to the press at the time that the number of songs, discs and length of the album had a connection with the Egyptians and Egyptian pyramids.[3]

## Response

[edit]

Professional ratingsReview scores

Source| Rating
AllMusic| [1]
Blender| [4]
Entertainment Weekly| B[5]
The Guardian| [6]
Los Angeles Times| [7]
Music Week| [8]
NME| 5/10[9]
Q| [10]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide| [11]
Spin| 7/10[12]
The Village Voice| A−[13]

In the United States, the album debuted at number 11. Though not a major seller, it did sell over 500,000 copies. Being three discs, it was qualified to being certified double platinum (the RIAA certifies based on the number of discs sold - 3 disc set).

The subsequent Jam of the Year World Tour was a major success (though very few songs from Emancipation were included in the concerts and the vast majority of the album's tracks remained unperformed), resulting in a significant comeback for Prince after the commercial and critical disappointment of Chaos and Disorder from four months earlier.

The song "The Love We Make" was used as the finale of 2020 TV series We Are Who We Are.[14]

## Track listing

[edit]

All tracks are written by Prince, except where noted.

Disc 1No.| Title| Writer(s)| Length

|
|
|

1.| "Jam of the Year"|  | 6:09
2.| "Right Back Here in My Arms"|  | 4:43
3.| "Somebody's Somebody"| Prince, Brenda Lee Eager, Hilliard Wilson| 4:43
4.| "Get Yo Groove On"|  | 6:31
5.| "Courtin' Time"|  | 2:46
6.| "Betcha by Golly Wow!"| Thom Bell, Linda Creed| 3:31
7.| "We Gets Up"|  | 4:18
8.| "White Mansion"|  | 4:47
9.| "Damned If I Do"|  | 5:21
10.| "I Can't Make U Love Me"| Mike Reid, Allen Shamblin| 6:37
11.| "Mr. Happy"|  | 4:46
12.| "In This Bed I Scream"|  | 5:40
Total length:| 1:06:09

Disc 2No.| Title| Writer(s)| Length

|
|
|

1.| "Sex in the Summer"|  | 5:57
2.| "One Kiss at a Time"|  | 4:41
3.| "Soul Sanctuary"| Prince, Sandra St. Victor, Thomas Hammer, Jonathan Kemp| 4:41
4.| "Emale"|  | 3:38
5.| "Curious Child"|  | 2:57
6.| "Dreamin' About U"|  | 3:52
7.| "Joint 2 Joint"|  | 7:52
8.| "The Holy River"|  | 6:55
9.| "Let's Have a Baby"|  | 4:07
10.| "Saviour"|  | 5:48
11.| "The Plan"|  | 1:47
12.| "Friend, Lover, Sister, Mother/Wife"|  | 7:37
Total length:| 59:52

Disc 3No.| Title| Writer(s)| Length

|
|
|

1.| "Slave"|  | 4:51
2.| "New World"|  | 3:43
3.| "The Human Body"|  | 5:42
4.| "Face Down"|  | 3:17
5.| "La, La, La Means I Love U"| Thom Bell, William Hart| 3:59
6.| "Style"|  | 6:40
7.| "Sleep Around"|  | 7:42
8.| "Da, Da, Da"|  | 5:15
9.| "My Computer"|  | 4:37
10.| "One of Us"| Eric Bazilian| 5:19
11.| "The Love We Make"|  | 4:39
12.| "Emancipation"|  | 4:12
Total length:| 59:56

Notes:

* Every use of the pronoun "I" throughout the song titles and liner notes is represented by a stylized "👁" symbol. This symbol is commonly transliterated as "eye" amongst Prince fans, as "👁 No" and "I Wish U Heaven" both appeared on Lovesexy.
* "Mr. Happy" contains a sample of "What Can I Do?" (1994) by Ice Cube.
* "Sex in the Summer" contains a sample of "Good Old Music" (1970) by Funkadelic.[15]
* "Face Down" contains a strings sample of "Killin' at the Soda Shop" by Jill Jones, orchestrated by Clare Fischer.[15]
* "Style" contains a sample of "Atomic Dog" (1982) by George Clinton.[15]
* "Sleep Around" contains a sample of "Squib Cakes" (1974) by Tower of Power.
* "The Love We Make" was inspired by Jonathan Melvoin's death caused from a heroin overdose.[15]

## Personnel

[edit]

Adapted from Benoît Clerc[15]

### Musicians

[edit]

* Prince – lead vocals (all tracks except 2;11 and 3;4), rap (tracks 1;2, 1;11, 3;4), spoken vocals (track 2;6), backing vocals (all tracks 2;9, 2;11, and 3;4), beat box (tracks 1;2, 3;1), electric guitar (tracks 1;1, 1;3–5, 1;7, 1;9, 1;12, 2;1, 2;4, 2;7–8, 2;10, 2;12, 3;2, 3;4, 3;6–10, 3;12), acoustic guitar (tracks 1;8–9, 2;5, 2;8, 2;12, 3;9), bass (all tracks except 1;6–7, 1;10, 2;1, 2;6, 2;10–11, 3;2–3, and 3;10), synthesizers (all tracks except 1;6, 2;9, and 3;10), piano (tracks 1;1–2, 1;5, 1;9, 2;5, 2;8–9, 3;5, 3;11), Hammond organ (track 3;7), drums (tracks 1;7, 1;9, 3;11), programming (tracks 1;4, 1;9–12), Roland TR-808 (track 3;8), finger cymbals (track 1;1), percussion (tracks 1;2–3, 1;9, 1;12, 2;3, 3;6), claps (tracks 1;5, 1;7, 2;10), tamborine (tracks 1;8, 2;1, 2;3, 2;8, 3;5)
* Walter Chancellor Jr. – saxophone (tracks 1;1, 3;6)
* Rosie Gaines – backing vocals (track 1;1)
* Eric Leeds – flute (track 1;1), saxophone (tracks 1;1, 1;4, 1;7, 1;10, 2;1, 2;4, 2;6, 3;6)
* Michael Mac – backing vocals (track 3;6), scratching (tracks 1;2, 1;11, 2;7)
* Ninety-9 – vocal sample (tracks 1;2, 3;4)
* Kat Dyson – backing vocals (track 1;4), electric guitar (track 2;1), Godin classical guitar (track 2;6)
* Mr. Hayes – backing vocals (track 1;4), synthesizers (track 1;6), Hammond organ (tracks 2;10, 3;10)
* Rhonda Smith – spoken vocals (track 1;4), bass (tracks 1;4, 1;7, 1;10, 2;1, 2;6)
* Brian Gallagher – tenor saxophone (tracks 1;5, 1;9, 2;10, 3;7)
* Dave Jensen, Steve Strand – trumpet (tracks 1;5, 1;9, 2;10, 3;7)
* Kathy Jensen – baritone saxophone (tracks 1;5, 1;9, 2;10, 3;7)
* Michael B Nelson – trombone (tracks 1;5, 1;9, 2;10, 3;7)
* Tommy Barbarella – synthesizers (tracks 1;6, 2;10, 3;10)
* Michael B. – drums (tracks 1;6, 2;10, 3;10)
* Sonny T. – bass (tracks 1;6, 2;10, 3;10)
* Brian Lynch – trumpet (tracks 1;7, 2;4, 3;6)
* Janice Garcia – spoken vocals (track 1;8)
* Mayte – Spanish spoken vocals (track 1;9), backing vocals (track 3;10)
* Todd Burrell – synthesizers (track 1;10)
* Scrap D. – rap (tracks 1;11, 3;8), backing vocals (track 3;6)
* Ricky Peterson – synthesizers (track 2;10), piano (track 2;1)
* Hans-Martin Buff – spoken vocals (track 2;7), sound effects (track 2;7)
* Savion Glover – tap dance (track 2;7)
* Kirk Johnson – drums (not confirmed) (track 2;8)
* Joe Galdo, César Sogbe – synthesizers (track 3;3), programming (tracks 3;3, 3;7)
* Chanté Moore – backing vocals (track 3;5)
* Mike Scott – electric guitar (track 3;5)
* Smooth G – backing vocals (track 3;6)
* Kate Bush – backing vocals (track 3;9)

### Technical

[edit]

* Prince – producer (all tracks), arrangements (all tracks)
* Steve Durkee, Shane T Keller – recording engineers (all tracks except 3;5 and 3;7)
* Ray Hahnfedt, Tom Tucker – recording engineers (all tracks except 3;7)
* Hans-Martin Buff, Peter Mokran – recording engineers (tracks 1;2, 1;4, 1;6–8, 1;10–12, 2;1–2, 2;4–8, 3;3, 3;6–7, 3;9, 3;11)
* Joe Galdo, César Sogbe – recording engineers (tracks 3;3, 3;7)
* Kirk Johnson – arrangements (all tracks)

## Singles and Hot 100 positions

[edit]

* "Betcha by Golly Wow!" (#31 US Airplay, #10 US R&B Airplay, #11 UK, #20 Australia)
1. "Betcha by Golly Wow!"
2. "Right Back Here in My Arms"
* "The Holy River" (UK CD 1) (#58 US Airplay, #19 UK)
1. "The Holy River" (radio edit)
2. "Somebody's Somebody" (edit)
3. "Somebody's Somebody" (live studio mix)
4. "Somebody's Somebody" (Ultrafantasy edit)
* "Somebody's Somebody" (promo CD) (#15 US R&B Airplay, #19 UK)
1. "Somebody's Somebody" (radio edit)
2. "Somebody's Somebody" (album version)

## Charts

[edit]

### Weekly charts

[edit]

Weekly chart performance for Emancipation | Chart (1996)  | Peak
position

|

Australian Albums (ARIA)[16] | 8
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[17] | 13
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[18] | 8
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[19] | 22
Danish Albums (Hitlisten)[20] | 15
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[21] | 13
French Albums (SNEP)[22] | 9
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[23] | 21
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[24] | 22
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[25] | 27
Spanish Albums (AFYVE)[26] | 42
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[27] | 22
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[28] | 1
UK Albums (OCC)[29] | 18
US Billboard 200[30] | 11
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[31] | 6

### Year-end charts

[edit]

Year-end chart performance for Emancipation | Chart (1997)  | Position

|

US Billboard 200[32] | 146
US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[33] | 68

## Certifications

[edit]

Certifications for Emancipation Region  | Certification | Certified units/sales

|
|

Canada (Music Canada)[34] | Platinum  | 100,000^
Japan (RIAJ)[35] | Gold  | 100,000^
United States (RIAA)[36] | 2× Platinum  | 666,666^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Emancipation – Prince". AllMusic. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
2. ^ Farley, Christopher John (November 25, 1996). "The Artist Formerly Known as Hot". Time. Vol. 148, no. 24\. ISSN 0040-781X. Retrieved September 16, 2011.
3. ^ DeCurtis, Anthony (October 17, 1996). "Records 3 hours of "Emancipation"". Rolling Stone. p. 36 – via Music & Performing Arts Collection, ProQuest.
4. ^ Harris, Keith (June–July 2001). "Prince — Every Original CD Reviewed: Emancipation". Blender. No. 1\. New York. Archived from the original on August 20, 2004. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
5. ^ Sinclair, Tom (December 13, 1996). "Emancipation". Entertainment Weekly. No. 357\. New York. ISSN 1049-0434. Archived from the original on April 27, 2020. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
6. ^ Glaister, Dan (November 22, 1996). "Sign of the times". The Guardian. London.
7. ^ Gardner, Elysa (November 20, 1996). "A Work of Self-Liberation and Devotion Fit for a Prince". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
8. ^ "Reviews: Albums" (PDF). Music Week. November 9, 1996. p. 10. Retrieved October 5, 2021.
9. ^ Beaumont, Mark (1996). "TAFKAP: Emancipation". NME. London.
10. ^ Maconie, Stuart (January 1997). "Prince: Emancipation". Q. No. 124\. London.
11. ^ Matos, Michaelangelo (2004). "Prince". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). New York: Simon & Schuster. pp. 654–57. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
12. ^ Powers, Ann (February 1997). "Prince: Emancipation". Spin. Vol. 12, no. 11\. New York. p. 85. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
13. ^ Christgau, Robert (January 28, 1997). "Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. New York. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
14. ^ St. Clair, Joshua (November 6, 2020). "HBO's 'We Are Who We Are' Will Make You Fall in Love With Italian Pop". Men's Health. Retrieved May 11, 2025.
15. ^ a b c d e Clerc, Benoît (2022). Prince: All the Songs. Octopus Publishing. p. 267\. ISBN 9781784728816.
16. ^ "Australiancharts.com – The Artist Formerly Known as Prince – Emancipation". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 1, 2016.
17. ^ "Austriancharts.at – The Artist Formerly Known as Prince – Emancipation" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved May 1, 2016.
18. ^ "Ultratop.be – The Artist Formerly Known as Prince – Emancipation" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved May 1, 2016.
19. ^ "Ultratop.be – The Artist Formerly Known as Prince – Emancipation" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved May 1, 2016.
20. ^ "Listen – Danmarks Officielle Hitliste – Udarbejdet af AIM Nielsen for IFPI Danmark – Uge 47". Ekstra Bladet (in Danish). Copenhagen. November 24, 1996.
21. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – The Artist Formerly Known as Prince – Emancipation" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved May 1, 2016.
22. ^ "Lescharts.com – The Artist Formerly Known as Prince – Emancipation". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 1, 2016.
23. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – The Artist Formerly Known as Prince – Emancipation" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved May 1, 2016.
24. ^ "Charts.nz – The Artist Formerly Known as Prince – Emancipation". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 1, 2016.
25. ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – The Artist Formerly Known as Prince – Emancipation". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 1, 2016.
26. ^ Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
27. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – The Artist Formerly Known as Prince – Emancipation". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 1, 2016.
28. ^ "Swisscharts.com – The Artist Formerly Known as Prince – Emancipation". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 1, 2016.
29. ^ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved February 20, 2019.
30. ^ "Prince Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved May 1, 2016.
31. ^ "Prince Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved May 5, 2021.
32. ^ "Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 1997". Billboard. January 2, 2013. Retrieved May 5, 2021.
33. ^ "Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 1997". Billboard. January 2, 2013. Retrieved May 5, 2021.
34. ^ "Canadian album certifications – Prince – Emancipation". Music Canada.
35. ^ "Japanese album certifications – Prince – Emancipation" (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan. Retrieved September 11, 2019. Select 1997年4月 on the drop-down menu
36. ^ "American album certifications – Prince – Emancipation". Recording Industry Association of America.

* v
* t
* e

Prince albums

Studio albums|

* For You
* Prince
* Dirty Mind
* Controversy
* 1999
* Purple Rain
* Around the World in a Day
* Parade
* Sign o' the Times
* Lovesexy
* Batman
* Graffiti Bridge
* Diamonds and Pearls
* Love Symbol
* Come
* The Black Album
* The Gold Experience
* Chaos and Disorder
* Emancipation
* Crystal Ball
* The Truth
* The Vault: Old Friends 4 Sale
* Rave Un2 the Joy Fantastic
* The Rainbow Children
* One Nite Alone...
* Xpectation
* N·E·W·S
* Musicology
* The Chocolate Invasion
* The Slaughterhouse
* 3121
* Planet Earth
* Lotusflow3r
* MPLSound
* 20Ten
* Plectrumelectrum
* Art Official Age
* Hit n Run Phase One
* Hit n Run Phase Two

Posthumous albums|

* Welcome 2 America †

Demo albums|

* Piano and a Microphone 1983 †
* Originals †

Live albums|

* One Nite Alone... Live!
* C-Note
* Indigo Nights
* Prince and the Revolution: Live †

Remix albums|

* Rave In2 the Joy Fantastic

Compilation albums|

* The Hits/The B-Sides
* Girl 6
* The Very Best of Prince
* Ultimate
* 4Ever †
* Anthology: 1995–2010 †

The NPG albums|

* Gold Nigga
* Exodus
* Newpower Soul

The NPG Orchestra albums|

* Kamasutra

Mixtapes|

* The Versace Experience: Prelude 2 Gold

Unreleased albums|

* Camille
* Crystal Ball
* Dream Factory
* Other unreleased projects

* †Released posthumously

Authority control databases |

* MusicBrainz release group

|

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