*One of several unreleased concert films that had been collecting dust in Prince’s vault may soon see the light of day.
In one of his first undertakings as an advisor to the Prince estate, Spotify executive Troy Carter is helping negotiate a deal that could give a major streaming service exclusive rights to a concert Prince had filmed in 1983 – featuring songs that would end up on the “Purple Rain” soundtrack the following year. Also on the table are rights to make a documentary about the film, sources tell Billboard.
Although Carter works for Spotify, the Prince estate is talking to a range of Spotify’s rivals including Apple Music, sources say.
The film of Prince’s Aug. 3, 1983, performance in Minneapolis not only includes deuted several of the songs released on “Purple Rain,” but also additional footage that a buyer could use to produce a documentary about the making of the film, sources say. The storied show at the First Avenue nightclub was a surprise gig billed as a benefit for the Minnesota Dance Theatre, with a setlist that included “Let’s Go Crazy” and “Purple Rain.”
Warner Music Group, which owns the rights to the Purple Rain soundtrack, is separately releasing an expanded edition of the album in June, which will include a 2015 remastered version of the original album; a second disc of rarities and previously unreleased tracks from Prince’s legendary vault; a disc of single edits, b-sides and extended versions; and a concert DVD from a March 30, 1985, performance by Prince and the Revolution at the Carrier Dome in Syracuse, N.Y.
According to Billboard’s Hannah Karp, “Carter’s willingness to negotiate such a deal with his company’s competitors amid the heated battle for streaming subscribers suggests that he is — as per his obligation to the Prince estate — prioritizing the estate’s interests over his own as Spotify’s global head of creator services. He joined Spotify last year after having managed acts from Lady Gaga to Meghan Trainor at his company the Atom Factory.”
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