Prince was no stranger to particularly filthy, raunchy songs. In fact, his sex appeal was a big part of what made him such a huge pop icon. Let’s take a look at just four of Prince’s raunchiest songs of his career. We had to leave a few tracks off because they were simply too inappropriate to list here.
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1. “Sister”
This track from Dirty Mind is one of many controversial songs from Prince’s long career, but it’s probably the most disturbing of them all. In this song, the narrator (which could very well be Prince) croons about a taboo relationship he had with his older sister. In a way, it’s kind of a heartbreaking song.
2. “Erotic City”
Well, it’s in the title, isn’t it? This song from Purple Rain features a duet between Prince and (we’d say underrated) pop R&B star Shiela E. “Erotic City” was a no. 1 hit, but it also ruffled a few feathers upon its release. The lyrics “We can funk until the dawn” were often misheard (use your imagination), and the FCC eventually started dishing out fines to radio stations in certain states for playing the song without censoring it.
3. “Head”
Out of all of Prince’s raunchiest songs, “Head” from the 1980 album Dirty Mind firmly planted the singer as a certified instigator in popular music. This hot and heavy track follows Prince’s walk down memory lane about the time he seduced a young to-be-wed bride on the day of her wedding. Naturally, in good ol’ male fantasy fashion, the bride runs away with Prince and calls off the wedding.
4. “Darling Nikki”
This iconic track from Purple Rain is about as direct as it gets in terms of sexuality. Throughout the song, Prince croons about a romantic encounter with a particularly shameless woman he met in a hotel lobby. It’s one of his most explicit songs, so it makes sense why it got so much attention from critics, excited fans, and pearl-clutching mothers alike.
“Darling Nikki” is the song that earned Prince a “parental advisory” sticker on this album and also pushed the Parents Music Resource Center to start tagging albums with said sticker for years to come. In a way, “Darling Nikki” was so raunchy that it changed music culture.
Photo by Ross Marino/Getty Images
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