What’s My Name

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What’s My Name

Crystalball album.png
from the album Crystal Ball
Song details
Performer: Prince
First Released: 29 January 1998 - Crystal Ball album
Album(s): Crystal Ball
Writer(s): Prince
Producer(s): Prince
Live Appearances
First and last live appearance:
Performed regularly on tour:
  • none
Performed occasionally in shows:

What’s My Name is the fourth track on the second disc of Prince’s 20th album Crystal Ball (his fourth using the name SymbolSmallerBlue.png). The album is not clearly divided between Prince tracks and SymbolSmallerBlue.png tracks, but, despite the track’s title, the timing of the track’s recording places it shortly before his public announcement of his name change to SymbolSmallerBlue.png, and the liner notes' discussion of this track state "After the increasing amounts of lollipops using the name Prince, the original came hard with this one", so it is credited to Prince in this entry. A portion of the song was premiered on 14 June 1993 on the "Paisley Park Hotline" telephone service, which promised to reveal Prince’s new name (having announced the name change to SymbolSmallerBlue.png on 7 June 1993). Instead, the song only created more confusion about his name. In August 1993, What’s My Name was included in the Glam Slam Ulysses stage-show, during the segment titled “Scylla” (segueing directly into the uncredited track Poem, later reworked as Orgasm).

In 2011, a significant portion of the song was included, uncredited, in a live version of Flash Light, which was streamed as a YouTube video (audio only, with a static image) on bandmember Andy Allo’s Facebook page within hours of its performance (What’s My Name had been performed in full for the first time ever earlier in the show).

While specific recording dates are not known, basic tracking took place in mid to late May 1993 at Paisley Park Studios in Chanhassen, Minnesota (during the same set of sessions that also produced Space, Pope, Strays Of The World, Interactive, Solo, and a reworked version of Race).


Recording Information
Recording Sessions
Date Studio Additional info
Mid-late May 1993 Paisley Park Studios,
Chanhassen, MN, USA
Tracking
Recording Personnel

Versions
Released Versions
Title Length Released Version Additional info
What’s My Name 3:03 Crystal Ball Studio


Broadcasts/streaming (only)
Title Length Released Version Additional info
Flash Light 10:50 Streaming video on Andy Allo’s Facebook page Live 26 July 2011 (a.m.): Melkweg - The Max, Amsterdam, The Netherlands (includes portions of What’s My Name); audio only with static image
What’s My Name TBC Yahoo! Live live concert stream Live 30 September 2014, Paisley Park Studios, Chanhassen, MN, USA; includes unidentified rap by Kendrick Lamar
Unreleased Versions
Title Version Additional Info
What’s My Name Studio Instrumentally different version/mix, used in Glam Slam Ulysses: “Scylla”
 
Additional Information

See also Trivia


References
What Should B Souled   < < < All Songs Unreleased Songs > > >   When 2 R In Love