Prince Once Refused Invitation to Play at the White House
Former U.S. President Barack Obama revealed that Prince once refused an invitation to perform at the White House.
The musician later rescinded and delivered a show a few months before his death in 2016, which the politician described as “remarkable.”
The revelation came during an interview alongside Bruce Springsteen on the BBC’s Graham Norton Show, as the pair discussed their new book, Renegades: Born in the USA. “We had some good parties at the White House,” Obama said in the clip available below. “Part of it is that we had amazing people like Bruce who were willing to play… and it turns out that folks, if they’re at a good party, they don’t want to go home – even if it’s the White House. So it would go late sometimes.:” He continued: “And people misbehaved in ways I would not have expected under the portrait of George Washington and Martha Washington. Nothing illegal, but, yeah…”
Asked by Norton if anyone rejected an offer to play at a White House party, Obama replied: “Honestly? No.” He went on: “One of the most remarkable performances we had – he did technically turn us down the first time – and that was Prince. In fact, in the book I think there’s a picture of me dancing with [daughter] Sasha on stage, with Prince playing in the background.
“It was actually probably two months, three months before he passed; so it was one of his last performances. He could not have been – it was unbelievable. And he actually performed on the keyboards with Stevie Wonder, did some stuff, and he could not have been better.”
Watch Obama Discuss White House Parties