Lotusflow3r is the 33rd full-length studio album by Prince (sold in a package with his 34th album MPLSound). It was initially released as a download on the launch date of Prince’s website lotusflow3r.com, with a CD release exclusively at Target five days later, in a 3CD package that also included MPLSound and Bria Valente’s first and only album Elixer.
In September 2009, the album was released in France as part of a 2CD package that also included MPLSound. At the same time, a single-disc set was released in France, titled Lotusflow3r but including the MPLSound disc (this was a deliberate marketing decision, not an error). In November, the album was released on vinyl in France as part of a 2LP package, again also including the MPLSound album.
The album’s download version contains one alternate track from the CD version. The Morning After is included as the third track on the download, while the CD includes Crimson And Clover in its place. The change has not been explained.
Sessions and compiling
Little is known about the recording dates for the album. Prince stated around the time of release that some tracks stem from the sessions for the album 3121.
The tracks featuring Michael B. and Sonny T., From The Lotus..., Colonized Mind, Love Like Jazz, Wall Of Berlin and ...Back 2 The Lotus, are likely to be from this time, recorded in late 2005. Some lyrics from ...Back 2 The Lotus are sampled in the track 3121, corroborating this further.
Additionally, Támar Davis appears on 4ever and Colonized Mind, suggesting they were recorded between 2005 and Summer 2006. A clip of Feel Better, Feel Good, Feel Wonderful was streamed by the NPG Music Club in June 2006, stating it was a work-in-progress, suggesting it was recorded around that time (although the album version is a different recording).
Boom, Crimson And Clover, 77 Beverly Park, $ and Dreamer are assumed to have been recorded in 2008, but this is unconfirmed, and some tracks may have been recorded earlier.
Promotion
The album did not produce any singles, but Prince promoted the album with a Target commercial (using the song Dreamer), as well as various TV appearances and one-off shows. There was no full tour to support this album, however.
The album reached number 2 on The Billboard 200, and number 1 on both the Billboard Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums chart and the Billboard Independent Albums chart, perhaps due in part to the sale of three CDs together for the low retail price of $11.98.
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