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HITNRUN Phase One

NPG Records

Record contracts are just like slavery. I would tell any young artist… don’t sign.

HITNRUN Phase One is Prince’s penultimate studio album. Its name recalls the series of short notice concerts he performed with his then backing band 3rdEyeGirl throughout 2014/15. The album contains reworked versions of This Could Be Us that debuted on Prince’s previous record Art Official Age, and A 1,000 Hugs And Kisses (in 2014 renamed 1000 X’s & O’s) which Prince recorded in Sydney April 1992 during the Australia leg of the Diamonds And Pearls Tour and originally featuring backing vocals of Rosie Gaines. Although HITNRUN Phase One includes the single Fallinlove2nite released 18 months prior, the vocals of Zooey Deschanel in the original are omitted on the album version. Three digital singles were produced; This Could B Us the only one issued in support of the album. HITNRUN Phase One features vocal contributions from emerging artists Judith Hill and sisters Dani and Charli Curiel, as well as Rita Ora.

HITNRUN Phase One was recorded and mixed at Paisley Park Studios between September 2014 and July 2015. Prince delegated the production to Joshua Welton – husband of Hannah Ford, drummer of Prince’s current backing and touring band 3rdEyeGirl. It was the pair’s second collaboration, following Art Official Age. HITNRUN Phase One continues the electro-funk flair of Art Official Age, and this time is a full co-production, unique in Prince’s catalogue, in which Joshua Welton worked at breakneck speed to mix Prince’s tracks to his style to reach a younger audience. He also remixes This Could B Us and Clouds (as Mr Nelson) that first appear on Art Official Age. HITNRUN Phase One premiered on 13 June 2015 at a private party that followed a special performance Prince played at the White House for President Barack Obama.

The method of distribution of HITNRUN Phase One sparked controversy amongst fans as Prince granted exclusivity for the release to TIDAL, which streamed it from 7 September 2015. Albeit an artist-friendly, audio lossless fidelity, subscription based streaming platform, the model denied fans the option to own the album without indefinitely subscribing to the service. To fans relief, a physical version of HITNRUN Phase One followed on 14 September. Not being a conventional Prince album, it charted at 70 on Billboard on its release, but climbed to 66 in the week following Prince’s death in April 2016. In the UK it peaked 50.

Prince | HitNRun: Phase 1 — Photography by Kevin Mazur

Cover story

Graphic illustrator Martin Homent created a series titled ‘The Many Faces Of Prince’ which documented the evolution of Prince’s hair and fashion in every year of his career. Prince later bought the rights to these images and choose two for the covers for what would become his final albums. The image chosen for HITNRUN Phase One is a stylised depiction of Prince’s 2014 cover of his previous album Art Official Age portrayed in Homent’s series.

Performers

Vocals/Bass: Prince
Programming: Joshua Welton
Trombone: Michael B. Nelson ^{Million $ Show and Fallinlove2nite}; Joey Rayfield ^{Like A Mack}
Trumpet: Steve Strand ^{Million $ Show and Fallinlove2nite}; Lynn Grissett ^{Like A Mack}; Dave Jensen ^{Million $ Show and Fallinlove2nite}
Tenor Saxophone: Kenni Holmen ^{Million $ Show and Fallinlove2nite}
Baritone Sax: Kathy Jensen ^{Million $ Show and Fallinlove2nite}
Saxophone: Keith Anderson ^{Like A Mack}; Marcus Anderson ^{Like A Mack}
Guitar: Donna Grantis ^{Ain't About 2 Stop}
Backing vocals: Hannah Ford ^{Ain't About 2 Stop}; Ida Nielsen ^{Ain't About 2 Stop}
Orchestration: Adi Yeshaya (STRINGenius) ^{Million $ Show and Fallinlove2nite}

Data

Production

Joshua Welton

Label

NPG Records

Distribution

NPG Records

Cover/Design

Martin Homent

Released

8 years ago on 7 September 2015

Running Time

37:53

US Chart Peak

UK Chart Peak

Prince Album

#38

Orig. Formats

Tracklist

Million $ Show [feat. Judith Hill] (3:10)
Shut This Down (3:03)
Ain't About To Stop [duet with Rita Ora] (3:38)
Like A Mack [feat. Danielle Leigh Curiel and Charli Curiel] (4:04)
This Could B Us (4:11) ¹
Fallinlove2nite
Fallinlove2nite(2014)
(3:12)
X's Face (2:38) ²
Hardrocklover (3:42)
Mr. Nelson [feat. Lianne La Havas] (2:27)
1000 X's & O's (4:27)
June (3:21)

Released as a single

¹ Remix of the studio version of This Could Be Us from Art Official Age.
² Cowritten with Joshua Welton.

Singles from HITNRUN Phase One

Fallinlove2nite

NPG Records

Released

17 March 2014

Distribution

Epic Records

US Chart Peak

Did not chart

UK Chart Peak

113

Cover/Art

Madison Dube

Format

Fallinlove2nite [feat. Zooey Deschanel] (3:18)

Hardrocklover

NPG Records

Released

7 July 2015

US Chart Peak

Did not chart

UK Chart Peak

Did not chart

Format

Hardrocklover (3:52)

This Could B Us

NPG Records

Released

28 August 2015

Distribution

Universal Music Group

US Chart Peak

Did not chart

UK Chart Peak

Did not chart

Format

This Could B Us (4:11)

HITNRUN Phase One – review

Ever since his split from the Warner Bros empire Prince fans have come highly accustomed, and dare admit, weather-worn to the shenanigans one has to endure when it comes to owning Prince’s new music thanks to his ceaseless crusade to shirk conventional music channels. The arrival of HITNRUN Phase One tasked fans to register trial account with the artist-friendly streaming service TIDAL; a decision that left a foul taste in the mouths of many, since to play it beyond that month required an indefinite paid subscription. The outcome was counterproductive in that rather than promote fair royalties for artists (the founding principal of TIDAL) it drove fans to source it illicitly. So what about the music: the opener is the upbeat Million $ Show and sets the scene for what is immediately evident a very different style of Prince album. Yet different it’s supposed to be. What becomes abundantly clear is Prince’s hands off approach to HITNRUN Phase One, judging by the almost total departure from Prince’s usual form, helmed by co-producer Joshua Welton. HITNRUN Phase One still features Prince’s distinctive flare but the listener has to root it out to hear it. His signature funk (thank heavens) is present in the bounciest track, the 90s throwback Shut This Down and the highly enjoyable Like A Mack. Overall HITNRUN Phase One is gloriously experimental and draped in plenty of bite, thanks to Welton. The sound is a significant stride beyond Prince’s and Welton’s last collaboration Art Official Age, which might divide fans in equal measure – Mr. Nelson and This Could B Us essentially remixed from Art Official Age are though no less impactful. Owing to Joshua Welton HITNRUN Phase One comes fresh as a daisy and that sense is most evident with Ain’t About To Stop in which Rita Ora guests. The task for HITNRUN Phase One is to appeal to a younger audience, a path Art Official Age begun and HITNRUN Phase One fearlessly continues. Whether this audience subscribes to premium streaming services is another matter in the face of so many free alternatives. HITNRUN Phase One won’t necessarily reboot Prince’s career but it gives a clean slate yet will require a few listens to fully absorb as one is left uncertain exactly who’s album this is. The production is to the usual Paisley Park standard, even possibly Prince’s slickest to date. The closing track, June, finds Prince back in ’86 form and comes as no surprise this is also the record’s highlight. Others are the urgent Hardrocklover and the rediscovered slow gem 1000 X’s & O’s a reworking from his vaulted 1991 original. HITNRUN Phase One followed on CD on 14 September, Prince fans are known for their jitters. Yet it begs the question how many obstacles should one negotiate simply to listen Prince’s new music, high-fidelity or not?