Paisley Park is a 65,000 square foot estate in Chanhassen, Minnesota, United States, once owned by American musician Prince. It was opened to the public as a museum in October 2016.
 Paisley Park in 2015 | |
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| Established | September 11, 1987 |
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| Location | 7801 Audubon Rd Chanhassen, Minnesota, U.S. 55317 |
| Website | paisleypark |
History
editConstruction of the $10 million[1] complex began in January 1986, and officially opened on September 11, 1987. Designed by architecture firm BOTO Design Inc., of Santa Monica, California, the main designers were architect Brett Thoeny and acoustician Marshall Long.[2][3] The complex shares its name with Prince's 1985 single, "Paisley Park".[4][5]
The Paisley Park studio complex totalled 55,000 square feet by the early 1990s, and includes four recording studios, a 12,500 square-foot sound stage, a video editing suite, rehearsal room, offices,[2] tenant space, and an underground parking garage. Other amenities include an outdoor basketball court,[6] and living quarters.[7][5]
Paisley Park's four recording studios are designated A, B, C, and D. Studio A is a 1,500 square-foot space and originally utilized a 48-channel mixing console, which was later replaced by a 64-channel SSL 6000E. Studio B is a 1,000 square-foot space that was, per Prince's specifications, patterned after Sunset Sound's Studio 3, with a custom-built Automated Processes, Inc. API mixing console.[8] Studio C has a 36-input Soundcraft TS24 console, and Studio D is a small DAW-based room.[2][8]
Initially a private studio used by Prince and Paisley Park Records artists like The Time, Carmen Electra, Jill Jones, Sheila E. and others, Paisley Park's production facilities were used by numerous artists, including Tevin Campbell, Martika, Fine Young Cannibals, Barry Manilow, Steve Miller, Bee Gees, Chris Mars, BoDeans, Madonna, Bob Mould, George Clinton, George Benson, Stone Temple Pilots, Stevie Wonder, R.E.M., and A-ha.[9][10]
After the Paisley Park Records label folded in 1994, Prince continued to live and record at Paisley Park Studios, and he intended to establish Paisley Park as a public venue like Graceland.[11] He was found dead in his estate's elevator on April 21, 2016.[12]
In the basement of Paisley Park there is a vault that held unreleased material, hundreds of hours of live recordings, music videos, and unheard songs.[13][14] The contents of the vault have been since removed and relocated to a studio in Los Angeles to be restored, remastered, and stored in climate-controlled conditions to be used for later releases.
An urn in the shape of Paisley Park which contains Prince's ashes was on display in Paisley Park's main entrance for a period of time after his death; after being moved into the vault, the urn was brought back out in 2021.[14][7][15][16][17]
Museum
editAfter Prince's death, Paisley Park was turned into a museum open to the public,[18][19] and tours of the Paisley Park Museum started in October 2016. Graceland Holdings, the company that has managed Elvis Presley's Graceland since 1982, organizes the tours.[20] Tours include recording studios, soundstages, and artifacts from Prince's personal archives.[21]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Lewis, Danny (26 April 2016). "Prince's Paisley Park Studios Will Become a Museum". smithsonianmag.com. Smithsonian. Retrieved 3 January 2023.
- ^ a b c Buskin, Richard (June 2013). "Classic Tracks: Prince 'Kiss'". Sound On Sound. SOS Publications Group. Retrieved 3 January 2023.
- ^ Petridis, Alexis (November 12, 2015). "Prince: 'Transcendence. That's what you want. When that happens – Oh, boy'". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved May 1, 2016.
- ^ Morris, Chris (26 April 2016). "Inside Prince's Mysterious Estate, the Next Graceland". fortune.com. Fortune. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
- ^ a b Karsen, Shira (April 22, 2016). "The Inside Story on Designing Prince's Paisley Park". Billboard. Billboard Publications Group. Retrieved January 22, 2024.
- ^ Moyer, Justin (22 April 2016). "The many mysteries of Prince's Paisley Park". Washington Post. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
- ^ a b Petrusich, Amanda (25 June 2018). "Paisley Park, Prince's Lonely Palace". The New Yorker. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
- ^ a b Harvey, Steve; Bullins, Strother (28 April 2016). "Remembering Prince: Engineer "Cubby" Colby". MIX. Future plc. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
- ^ "Deep Dive: A-ha, MEMORIAL BEACH | Rhino".
- ^ "Memorial Beach (1993)". May 23, 2022.
- ^ Lang, Brett; Van Syckle, Katie (April 23, 2016). "Inside Prince's Emotional Final Concerts Before His Death". Variety. Retrieved April 23, 2016.
- ^ Pam Louwagie, Pam; Justin, Neal; Riemenschneider, Chris (April 21, 2016). "Music legend Prince found dead at 57 at Paisley Park". Star Tribune. Retrieved April 21, 2016.
- ^ Wood, Betty (27 April 2016). "Paisley Park: inside the haven that shaped Prince's sound". thespaces.com. VF Publishing. Retrieved 3 January 2023.
- ^ a b Millar, Aaron (16 April 2017). "Purple patch: touring Prince's Paisley Park mansion in Minneapolis". theguardian.com. Retrieved 3 January 2023.
- ^ Tribune, Jon Bream Star. "Urn with Prince's ashes still in the building, 'just not on display' at Paisley Park". Star Tribune. Retrieved 2024-07-03.
- ^ Brodsky, Rachel (April 21, 2021). "Thousands of Prince fans queue at Paisley Park to see singer's urn for the first time". Independent.co.uk.
- ^ "Prince's ashes to be displayed marking 5th year of his death". AP News. 2021-03-23. Retrieved 2024-07-03.
- ^ "Paisley Park likely to open for public tours in October". Star Tribune. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
- ^ "Paisley Park tours, Minneapolis: Inside Prince's amazing home studio". Stuff. April 10, 2018. Retrieved April 12, 2018.
- ^ "Paisley Park, home of Prince, will be open to public tours". NBC News. Retrieved 25 August 2016.
- ^ "Prince's Paisley Park estate and studio will open for public tours in October". theguardian.com. 24 August 2016. Retrieved 3 January 2023.