Prince Estate Releases Unreleased Song by The Late Singer “Do Me, Baby”

In April of 2016, the music and entertainment world lost one of its biggest icons. From the fun flirtatiousness of “Raspberry Beret” to the internal and relationship turmoil of “When Doves Cry” to the romance of his film Purple Rain, Prince defined music, fashion and culture throughout the ‘80s and early ‘90s. His estate has made it possible, though, for the artist to continue to release music in 2021. 

According to Consequence, the Prince estate recently shared the previously unreleased “Do Me, Baby,” a 1979 demo for the track that appeared on his 1981 album Controversy. This demo comes exactly 40 years after the album’s original release: October 14, 1981.

With its soulful piano, groovy synth and falsetto, the track doubtlessly has the Prince flair. It doesn’t have the gated reverb and hi-hats typically associated with the artist, but it doesn’t need to — it’s a more vulnerable and intimate story, bringing strength with sensuality.  

This isn’t the first time the estate has released Prince’s music posthumously. This past July, for example, they released the album Welcome 2 America, which featured recordings from 2010. Most of the album was drawn from archives, but one track, the nostalgic classic-rock-inspired “Hot Summer,” was released in 2010.  

In June, the estate also released “Born 2 Die,” a Curtis Mayfield-influenced track released as a response to Dr. Cornel West’s comment that Prince was “no Curtis Mayfield.” If recordings from 2010 and demos from 1979 are moving out of the vault, there may be hope that there are other unreleased songs in the future. 

Skyler Graham: Duke University psychology and English major. Editor at @dukechronicle and @dukeform. Punk album reviewer at mxdwn.com.
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