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About

Genius Annotation

“I Would Die 4 U” is the fourth single from Prince and the Revolution’s 1984 album-film Purple Rain. In the movie, it was one of two songs The Kid performs as an encore after the title song, and it segues directly into “Baby I’m A Star”. This dance track was the last top-ten hit from the album, reaching number 8 on the Billboard Hot 100. Its B-Side was “Another Lonely Christmas”.

Lyrically, Prince acts as a messenger of a Messiah (with specific references to Jesus Christ), like he did in “Let’s Go Crazy,” telling the world that everything will be okay now that he is there. Along with “When Doves Cry” and “Purple Rain”, it is considered one of Prince’s most successful and signature songs, appearing on the compilations The Very Best of Prince, Ultimate, Prince 4Ever, and The Hits/The B-Sides. The original song is a short 2:51, and the single version alters the ending, changing it from the Baby, I’m a Star segue, and an extended version, a whopping 10:15, includes Sheila E., and was released on certain 12" vinyl issues.

Despite being a raunchy and sex positive pop culture figure, Prince was actually a conservative Christian. He was raised as a Seventh-day Adventist and later became a Jehovah’s Witness—two sects of Christianity more fringe than mainstream. “I Would Die 4 U” is chock full of biblical and religious references.

Q&A

Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning

Does prince mean that he is not human or something?
Genius Answer

In a way, yes. Like most of the Purple Rain album, Prince makes himself synonymous with the Messiah; he believed in God long before “realizing” he was a Jehovah’s Witness in 2001, and he believed in spreading His message. That’s one of the themes of “I Would Die 4 U” – Prince was willing to “die”, or surrender himself to his God, allowing Him to use the Purple One as a messenger; thus, he looked at himself as a human incarnate of God. In his own words:

“[Faith] is going to help you in all aspects of life,” Prince once explained in an interview. “Once you can clean out the cobwebs, so to speak, and then you’re going to be able to see things more clearly.”

And in the words of biographer Touré:

“[Prince] is pursuing a mission that’s a bit more like what Jesus did, out among the lepers and the prostitutes, ministering to people who don’t want the message, who don’t expect it to come, who aren’t looking for it at all. ‘You promised me that there would be sex.’ ‘Well, there is and there was and there will be, but let me talk to you about Jesus Christ a little bit. And actually a lot…’”

Who was it written for?
Genius Answer

It isn’t known if “I Would Die 4 U” was written for anyone specifically. The song was first performed by Prince & The Revolution in early 1983, over a year before Purple Rain, and it’s believed the song was adapted from a soundcheck session on “The Controversy Tour” as early as 1981. When it came to making and configuring the album, Prince could have refined the lyrics and message of the song specifically for Purple Rain.

Credits
Produced By
Written By
Mastering Engineer
Vocals
Percussion
Recorded At
First Avenue, Minneapolis, MN (August 3, 1983) and Sunset Sound, Los Angeles, CA (August - September 1983)
Release Date
June 25, 1984
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