Interview: Ginuwine - Singer and Songwriter - Page 8

A lot of sources list your primary musical influence as Prince. I'm curious to know what you admire the most about his musical career.

I've always admired Prince for his talent. He plays so many instruments. Him being the way that he is and looking the way that he looks, you can tell he's a leader. I've just always admired him for standing up and being who he wants to be and doing what he wants to do. There's not enough of that in the industry and I think there are a lot of people now who are followers. Even companies or labels, if they see something that works, they'll throw a million people out there that are doing the same thing and that takes away from who did it first. I just respect him for being Prince, doing what he's done throughout the years, being a leader and taking no crap, doing what he wants to do.

So what's the story behind your name? Or is it self-explanatory?

Oh, man. It was basically what we just talked about. I needed a name that best describes who I am as a man, as a person. My name is Elgin, so I just took the Gin. I think I was looking at some type of beer commercial – genuine draft or something like that. I was like, "Ginuwine – that's hot." So I tried it out and it stuck. 

Many years from now, when you look back on your career, how do you want to be remembered?

Me as an artist – I just want to be remembered as giving all that he can in his shows. I think that when people pay money to see you, it's your job and your duty to give them the best possible show you can give them. I like to inspire like Barack Obama's change – to do something different, you know what I mean? That's pretty much what it is for me, man, to be remembered as an entertainer. One of the best entertainers.

For more information on Ginuwine, visit his official MySpace page.

Article Author: Clayton Perry

Clayton Perry's mission parallels that of John Hope Franklin, Marcus Garvey and Carter G. Woodson. As the founder of the NUBIANO Project, Perry facilitates the design of projects that give voice to the Black diaspora, empower the Black community, …

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