Iconic recording artist Prince announced plans for his “Welcome 2 America” concert series this December, and now the first five dates have been revealed by metro New York radio station WBLS.
During the five-date run, Prince will split his time between East Rutherford, NJ, and New York, NY. The series begins with a three-night run (December 14, 15 and 17) at the Izod Center, before moving across the river for a more sprawling stand (December 18 and 29) at Madison Square Garden.
The Purple One announced his plans for a “series of events” that would “begin on a purple day in December” during an October 14 press conference at the Apollo Theater in Harlem, NY. However, apart from Prince’s brief statement, dates and venues for the venture were kept under wraps until this week.
The metro-area station WBLS was ultimately the one to reveal the details of Prince’s plans when it confirmed hourly ticket giveaways, beginning October 25, for the concert events. Public ticket sales start later on October 30 via Ticketmaster, according to the official WBLS Web site.
The exact format and duration of the concert series has not been revealed. Since Prince pulled his Lotusflow3r.com site off the Internet last year, the eccentric and eclectic artist does not have an official online portal for making event announcements and updates.
What little is known about the string of concerts was explained by Prince at the Apollo.
“Welcome 2 America is best described as what we’ve all been waiting for,” the originator of the Minneapolis sound stated during his earlier press conference. “I will serve as master of ceremonies for multiple nights of entertainment that will feature some of the best artists this country has to offer.”
The Purple One named Maceo Parker, Janelle Monae, Mint Condition, Esperanza Spalding and Cassandra Wilson among the participating artists. Prince will serve as master of ceremonies each evening and will perform with his longtime band, The New Power Generation.
“Without giving too much away, anyone that has ever been to one of our concerts…they know what time it is,” Prince’s statement continued. “So you need to come early, you need to come often, because every time we play there’s always something new. No concert is ever the same.”
Prince’s last major concert series in the United States was based on the West Coast in the form of three concerts in one night at the L.A. Live complex in Los Angeles, CA.
Over the next few weeks, the royally named musician will continue his international tour itinerary. Prince’s remaining fall calendar features several European concerts, as well as a November 14 show in the United Arab Emirates, according to event listings on Pollstar.com.
