Prince (November 10, 1996) – “Artists Formerly Known as Hits” Feature - Los Angeles Times

Nine days before Emancipation was due for release, the Los Angeles Times examined an uncertain Christmas market in which several established recording stars had recently disappointed record retailers. Against that background, Prince’s forthcoming three-disc Emancipation was singled out as a potential exception, with the article asking whether the newly independent artist could make a major commercial comeback.

FEATURE HIGHLIGHTS

FEATURE	DETAILS
Artist:	Prince
Publication:	Los Angeles Times
Publication Date:	November 10, 1996
Location:	Los Angeles, California, USA
Section:	Pop Music / Pop Eye
Page:	60
Writer:	Steve Hochman
Headline:	Artists Formerly Known as Hits
Album Discussed:	Emancipation
Format:	Music Industry Feature
Principal Theme:	Record retailers assess major forthcoming releases after disappointing sales from several established artists

ORIGINAL SOURCE MATERIAL

ORIGINAL NEWSPAPER PAGE

[ LOS ANGELES TIMES, NOVEMBER 10, 1996 – “ARTISTS FORMERLY KNOWN AS HITS”]

INTRODUCTION

ARTISTS FORMERLY KNOWN AS HITS	PRINCE WITH SOMETHING TO PROVE
Steve Hochman’s feature considers the uncertain state of the late-1996 record market after new releases by several major acts failed to generate the enormous sales retailers had hoped for.	Prince appears within that wider argument as another established artist preparing an important new release, but with one substantial difference: Emancipation was being positioned as the beginning of a newly independent phase.

THE HEADLINE

A PLAY ON PRINCE’S NAME	A WIDER INDUSTRY STORY
“Artists Formerly Known as Hits” deliberately plays on the familiar contemporary description “The Artist Formerly Known as Prince”.	The joke is broader than Prince alone. Hochman uses the phrase to question whether established stars could automatically be relied upon to produce blockbuster record sales.

A DIFFICULT CHRISTMAS MARKET

BIG NAMES	RETAIL CAUTION
The article begins by discussing disappointing performances from several high-profile releases already on the market.	Retailers quoted in the feature were therefore reluctant to assume that simply attaching a famous name to a new album would guarantee enormous Christmas sales.

PRINCE ENTERS THE QUESTION

A MAJOR COMEBACK?	THREE CDs
Hochman then asks whether the artist formerly known as Prince might make a substantial comeback with the forthcoming Emancipation.	The project’s unusual three-CD format immediately distinguished the release from most of the records being considered by retailers ahead of the holiday season.

THE PHOTOGRAPH

THE SYMBOL	EMANCIPATION
One photograph beneath the main article shows hands positioned around Prince’s Symbol, providing a strong visual connection with the identity being used during this period.	The printed caption identifies Emancipation as the three-disc Prince release retailers expected to perform strongly, placing the record directly within the feature’s discussion of potential holiday successes.

RETAIL EXPECTATIONS

CONFIDENCE TEMPERED BY EXPERIENCE	STRONG PROSPECTS
The article stresses that retailers had recently been disappointed by other major releases, making predictions considerably more cautious.	Even within that climate, Emancipation is represented among the records expected to attract substantial attention, although the newspaper does not treat success as automatically guaranteed.

EMANCIPATION BEFORE RELEASE

NOVEMBER 10	NOVEMBER 19
The feature appeared while Emancipation was still a forthcoming release rather than an album whose commercial performance could already be measured.	This makes the cutting particularly valuable as a snapshot of industry expectation. Retailers were discussing what Prince might achieve rather than retrospectively explaining what had already happened.

THE SYMBOL PERIOD

ARTIST IDENTITY	A COMMERCIAL QUESTION
The article’s headline makes Prince’s changed public identity part of the commercial narrative surrounding the album.	By using Prince as the linguistic basis of the headline while discussing several artists, the newspaper demonstrates how instantly recognisable the “Artist Formerly Known As” phrase had become by late 1996.

A DIFFERENT KIND OF EMANCIPATION ARTICLE

NOT PRIMARILY ABOUT THE WARNER DISPUTE	A MARKET PERSPECTIVE
Unlike several other November 10 newspaper features, this article is not principally explaining Prince’s contractual freedom or the end of the Warner Bros. relationship.	Hochman instead places Emancipation within the commercial realities of record retail, Christmas sales expectations and uncertainty surrounding the drawing power of established stars.

THE PREACHER’S WIFE

WHITNEY HOUSTON	HOLIDAY EXPECTATIONS
A large central photograph promotes hopes for the soundtrack to The Preacher’s Wife, another release discussed as potentially important during the Christmas period.	Its inclusion reinforces that the feature is fundamentally about the record business rather than being a dedicated Prince profile.

OTHER MAJOR RELEASES

ESTABLISHED ARTISTS	THE MARKETPLACE
The article considers a range of current and forthcoming records while asking which names could still generate major sales.	Prince therefore appears within a wider commercial snapshot of American popular music rather than in isolation.

SNOOP DOGGY DOGG

RECORD RACK	THA DOGGFATHER
A separate Record Rack column on the right side of the same page reviews Snoop Doggy Dogg’s Tha Doggfather.	Although unrelated editorially to the Prince discussion, the adjacent review helps preserve the broader pop and rap context of the original Los Angeles Times music page.

WHY THIS SOURCE IS DIFFERENT

STAR TRIBUNE / STATESMAN JOURNAL	LOS ANGELES TIMES
Other November 10 sources emphasised the size of Emancipation, Prince’s new freedom, NPG Records, EMI and the approaching November 19 launch.	This Los Angeles Times feature asks a different question: would the public actually buy the records in sufficient numbers? That makes it an especially useful companion to the more celebratory pre-release coverage.

THREE NEWSPAPER PERSPECTIVES

THE RELEASE ITSELF	THE BUSINESS STORY
The Minneapolis advertisement presents Emancipation as 36 new songs, three CDs and three hours of music. The Statesman Journal concentrates on Prince’s creative freedom and new business arrangements.	The Los Angeles Times captures retailer caution and industry expectations, documenting the uncertainty that existed before sales figures could provide an answer.

WHAT THE CUTTING DOCUMENTS

PRINCE / EMANCIPATION	THE WIDER MARKET
Prince’s Symbol-era identity Emancipation Three-disc format Pre-release retailer expectations Possible major comeback Holiday-market positioning	Retail caution Established stars underperforming expectations Christmas record market The Preacher’s Wife soundtrack Other major contemporary releases

CONTEXT AND NOTES

HISTORICAL CONTEXT	ARCHIVAL SIGNIFICANCE
Documented by the November 10 page: Hochman examines retailers’ unease after several major releases failed to deliver the sales expected of established names. Prince’s forthcoming Emancipation is included among the records whose commercial prospects were being assessed.	The article provides an especially useful counterweight to straightforward promotional material. Instead of assuming that Emancipation would succeed because Prince was newly independent and releasing an enormous body of music, it preserves the uncertainty of the marketplace immediately before release.
The page is headed Pop Music and the article appears under Hochman’s Pop Eye column. Prince is one significant part of the feature rather than its sole subject.	For the Prince archive, that wider context is valuable. It records how Emancipation was perceived not merely as a personal or artistic statement but as a major commercial test within the American record industry.

CONCLUSION

ARTISTS FORMERLY KNOWN AS HITS	EMANCIPATION AS A COMMERCIAL TEST
Steve Hochman’s deliberately playful headline captured a genuine record-industry concern in November 1996: yesterday’s major stars could no longer automatically be expected to generate yesterday’s sales.	Prince’s Emancipation entered that uncertain landscape with an extraordinary three-disc proposition and heightened attention surrounding Prince’s newly independent phase. Nine days before release, however, the final verdict remained unwritten. The Los Angeles Times preserves precisely that moment of expectation and doubt.

SOURCES

SOURCE MATERIAL	ARCHIVAL VERIFICATION
Los Angeles Times November 10, 1996 Steve Hochman “Artists Formerly Known as Hits” Original supplied newspaper page	Original Los Angeles Times newspaper scan

COPYRIGHT & ARCHIVAL NOTE

COPYRIGHT & ARCHIVAL USE

All newspaper scans, photographs, advertisements, record artwork and original text excerpts referenced in this entry remain the property of their respective copyright holders. This Chronicle entry is a transformative, non-commercial archival summary created for historical documentation and educational reference. No ownership of the original material is claimed or implied.