"Controversy" is a song by American musician

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...

, released in September 1981 by

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (WBEI), commonly known as Warner Bros. (WB), is an American filmed entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California and the main namesake subsidiary of Warner Bro ...

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. In the US, it peaked at numbers three and 70 on the US ''Billboard'' Soul Singles chart and ''Billboard'' Hot 100. Also, along with the track, "Let's Work", "Controversy" was the first of seven number ones on the dance chart for Prince. On November 29, 1993, in support of ''

The Hits/The B-Sides ''The Hits/The B-Sides'' is a box set by American recording artist Prince. It was released on September 10, 1993, by Paisley Park Records and Warner Bros. Records. The album is a comprehensive three- disc set consisting of many of his hit sin ...

'', the song was once again released in the UK as a single, reaching number five on the UK Singles Chart in December 1993.

Composition

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 The Lord's Prayer, also known by its incipit Our Father (, ), is a central Christian prayer attributed to Jesus. It contains petitions to God focused on God’s holiness, will, and kingdom, as well as human needs, with variations across manusc ...

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 The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...

, and keyboards. The song was backed with " When You Were Mine", from his previous album, ''

Dirty Mind ''Dirty Mind'' is the third studio album by the American singer-songwriter and musician Prince. It was released on October 8, 1980, by Warner Bros. Records. The album is notable for Prince's increasing reliance on rock music elements, high reg ...

''.

Live in Hawaii

"Controversy (Live in Hawaii)" is a

digital single In music, a single is a type of release of a song recording of fewer tracks than an album ( LP), typically one or two tracks. A single can be released for sale to the public in a variety of physical or digital formats. Singles may be standa ...

made available for sale on

's website on March 29, 2004. The single consists of a live performance of the song: "Controversy", recorded on tour in

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

in 2003. The track also saw a limited release as a

CD single A CD single is a single (music), music single in the form of a compact disc (CD). Originally the ''CD single'' standard (as defined in the Rainbow Books, Red Book) was an 8 cm (3-inch) "mini CD" (''CD3''); later on the term referred to any si ...

, only available as part of a ''Prince in Hawaii Gift Box'', available from Prince's retail outlet.

Legacy

In 2022, ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' ranked "Controversy" number 19 in their list of the "200 Greatest Dance Songs of All Time".

Personnel

Sourced from Benoît Clerc, Guitarcloud, Morris Day and David Ritz. *

– lead and backing vocals,

Oberheim OB-X The Oberheim OB-X was the first of Oberheim Electronics, Oberheim's OB-series polyphony (instrument), polyphonic Analog synthesizer, analog Subtractive synthesis, subtractive synthesizers. First commercially available in June 1979, the OB-X was ...

, Oberheim OB-SX, electric guitars, bass guitar, Pearl SY-1 Syncussion, handclaps; possible drums * Lisa Coleman – backing vocals *

Morris Day Morris E. Day (born December 13, 1957) is an American musician and songwriter. He is best known as the lead singer of The Time. Music career Morris Day is best known as the lead singer of The Time, a group associated with Prince. Day and Pr ...

– possible drums

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Controversy (Song) 1981 singles 1981 songs 1993 singles 2004 singles Music videos directed by Bruce Gowers Prince (musician) songs Song recordings produced by Prince (musician) Songs written by Prince (musician) Warner Records singles