James Gordon Williams first heard Prince’s music as a high school student. “The album Sign ‘O’ the Times (1987) was popular then and Prince’s music videos were available via MTV-style music video channels,” recalls Williams, assistant professor of African American Studies in the College of Arts and Sciences. “I also had a cursory awareness of “Purple Rain,” but did not grasp the cultural significance of the landmark album and the subsequent movie at that time,” he adds.
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