Prince

One of the most original, influential, and consistently adventurous artists of his generation, Prince Rogers Nelson started out in the late ‘70s as a Bootsy Collins-meets-Stevie Wonder one-man funk band with a penchant for R-rated lyrics. By the mid ‘80s, Prince had made a mind-blowing artistic journey that brought together a pioneering, genre-destroying mix of synth-pop, hard rock, sleek R&B, and left-field eccentricity. In 1984, he redefined what a platinum-selling pop record could sound like with the defiantly experimental Purple Rain, and began a quirky film career with the semi-autobiographical movie of the same name. His next few albums, trafficking in everything from psychedelia to minimalist electronic dance music, were among the most acclaimed of the decade. But as the '90s dawned, Prince started to spend as much time battling with his label as he did in the studio, and his (temporary, it turned out) decision to change his name to an unpronounceable glyph cemented a new public image as a grumpy little freak. Too bad, because starting with 1996's sprawling Emancipation, Prince's self-released albums became even more unconventional and musically expansive than his '80s classics.