Turning the Tidal

Not usually one to swim with the tide (he did, after all, declare the Internet to be “completely over” in 2010), Prince has announced that his next release will be exclusively released through streaming platform Tidal.

This follows the purple one pulling his music from all streaming services apart from Tidal last month, despite then going on to release a surprise track on Spotify. Industry rumours are swirling that the B-sides will then be released on limited edition Betamax.

According to a press release, the partnership between the Jay Z fronted streaming service and Prince was “quickly cemented out of mutual admiration and respect and a profound belief in artists’ rights”. Good to see that the Tidal superheroes remain on their high horses despite a deeply embarrassing launch event (link to).

Prince said: “After one meeting, it was obvious that Jay Z and the team he has assembled at Tidal recognise and applaud the effort that real musicians put into their craft to achieve the very best they can at this pivotal time in the music industry”.

The great one continued: “Secondly, Tidal have honored us with a non-restrictive arrangement that once again allows us to continue making art in the fashion we’ve grown accustomed to and we’re extremely grateful 4 their generous support”.

The relationship between Prince and Tidal started in May, when Tidal live streamed the first hour of Prince’s RALLY 4 PEACE concert in Baltimore, hosting audio streams and matching funds for donations made through the platform.

When it comes to Prince, in the words of Jay Z: “Momma ain’t raised no fool”. Detractors may scoff, as they did when he started releasing albums on the front pages of tabloid newspapers a few years ago but this deal is likely to make sense on commercial and creative levels for Prince.