People & Places

Comments (0) Best Celebrity Letdown - 2011

Prince almost joins Gayngs at First Avenue

Prince almost joins Gayngs at First Avenue

Prince almost joins Gayngs at First Avenue

701 1st Ave. N.

Minneapolis, MN

612-338-8388

Map & Details>>

It seemed destined to be the event of the year: Gayngs' first-ever public performance, themed "The Last Prom on Earth," on a Friday last May. As the mellowed-out sounds of the band wafted from the First Avenue stage, chatter from the audience was abruptly halted by a new buzz: "He's here! I saw him!" Those connected at the brainstem to Twitter quickly learned that the Purple One, the Artist Currently Known As Prince, had been seen walking into the club, guitar in hand, before he took up residence near the green room just off the stage and requested that a tech plug in his guitar. Were we about to be treated to an unannounced secret guest performance? Had Gayngs mastermind Ryan Olson arranged all this—were his connections that vast? As the story goes, Prince played along offstage briefly, then unplugged and left the building. Was he peeved no one formally announced his presence? Or was he so impressed by the performance that he felt his skills weren't needed? We'll never know. That Prince—such an enigma.

Download our Free Best Of App

Write Your Comment

*indicates required fields. Please enable browser cookies before filling out this form. All reader comments are subject to our Terms of Use. By clicking Add Comment, you acknowledge that you have reviewed and agree to these Terms.

Comments may take a few minutes to process and appear on the site. Please do not click the "Add Comment" button again while your comment is being added.

  • *
  • *
  • *
  • *

    (The four characters are not case sensitive):
for free stuff, concert and dining info & more!

Best of Award Graphics

Most Popular Stories

Browse Voice Nation
  • Voice Places

    Voice Places

    Discover restaurants, nightlife, travel, shopping...

  • VOICE Daily Deals

    VOICE Daily Deals

    Get 50 to 90% off every day on restaurants, movies, massages...

  • Best Of

    Best Of...

    More than 10,000 of the BEST things to eat, drink, and experience

  • My Voice Nation

    My Voice Nation

    Join the Village Voice community and get exclusive deals and info

  • Happy Hour

    Happy Hour

    Your local Happy Hour guide at your fingertips

or

Log in or Sign up

Social Connect:

Use your favorite account to access My Voice Nation.


Use your My Voice Nation account to log in:





Forgot password?
or

Sign Up or Log in

Social Connect:

Sign up for My Voice Nation with your preferred network.


Sign up for a My Voice Nation account:



Privacy policy