January 12, 2016: Ruff Enuff

A vocal version of Ruff Enuff (credited to MonoNeon) replaces the instrumental version offered on Tidal the previous day

Ruff Enuff by MonoNeon was released as a download and the Tidal Purple Pick of the Week on January 11, four and a half days after its recording. The instrumental track features Prince as producer and on keyboards. The following day, the track was replaced with a vocal version, with lead vocals on vocoder by Adrian Crutchfield. No writing credits are given, and it is thought to have been largely improvised by the musicians who took part in the recording.

Initial tracking occurred in October 2015, likely with lyrics, as Prince performed the song during a few shows at Paisley Park. "Ruff Enuff" was re-recorded on January 6, 2016, at Paisley Park Studios in Chanhassen, Minnesota. Prince's Twitter account announced the track early the next morning.

"JUST CUT A THE JAZZ SINGLE "RUFF ENUFF" WITH KAJ ON DRUMS, ADRIAN ON TALKINGSAXBOX & MONO NEON ON BASS! ONLY NEED A LIL' DONNA MESS &: $$$!"

It is believed, therefore, that a further session was planned for guitar overdubs by Donna Grantis. In response to a fan asking when they could hear the track, @Prince3EG replied:

"HOPEFULLY, THIS WEEKEND."

The track was released the following Monday as Tidal’s Purple Pick of the Week, without a contribution from Donna Grantis. The description of the track as provided to Tidal by NPG Records included the following information:

"You may recognize Kirk A Johnson on drums, Mono Neon on bass and Adrian Crutchfield on sax and electric woodwinds as the house band 4 Prince’s Paisley Park After Dark Jam Sessions. Well, that’s not all they do. 4 the past week they’ve been cutting basic trax 4 their as yet untitled debut album. With Prince producing and handling the keyboard & guitar duties, the set promises 2 b picking up right where Judith Hill’s BACK IN TIME left off. These brothas murder the funk! Normally they wouldn’t let a track out until it’s finished, but this one had 2 go! It was ruining everybody’s good loox. If U think U can resist the funk, check out the key change of Mono’s bass solo at near 4 oclockmark. Exactly."

During the Twitter exchange about the track, a fan asked if this was the first track to be recorded in 2016, to which @Prince3EG replied:

"YES, IT'S ALREADY GOT A SISTER: ON THE SAME ALBUM AS "FREE URSELF"...THEY SOUND GREAT 2GETHER!"

This information led to some confusion because Ruff Enuff was released under the artist credit Mono Neon, whereas Free Urself was attributed to Prince. Band members MonoNeon and Adrian Crutchfield have since confirmed that Ruff Enuff is a track from MonoNeon’s Black Is The New Black album, suggesting that Free Urself was also intended (possibly with overdubs or a re-recording) for the same album. There is also speculation that Free Urself was the title of an album Prince was developing, but this remains unconfirmed. If true, it is possible that Ruff Enuff was also intended for this Prince album with lyrics rather than as an instrumental, as the live performances from late 2015 to early 2016 included verses and a chorus sung by Prince.