About Us
The Magazine 4 Prince Fans & Collectors
Purple Music
Uptown was an independent and uncensored publication, devoted to exploring the musical world of Prince. The magazine was not endorsed, sponsored, authorized or in any with connected with Prince, Paisley Park Enterprises, NPG Records or any of the entities associated with Prince. Created in 1991 by a dedicated team of fans and collectors, including founders Per Nilsen and Lars Einarsson, the magazine quickly became known for its independent and insightful analysis.
The Work Part 1
Over 12 years, Uptown published 60 issues and several books, cementing its reputation as a leading authority on all things Prince. The team behind Uptown also produced a number of books, Days Of Wild, Turn It Up, Turn It Up 2.0 and the 700-page The Vault, which was the culmination of their work. The Vault was published in 2004 as Uptown closed its operations and Per and Lars embarked on new endeavors. Per (an economist) joined academia for PhD studies in 2006 and is now a professor in public health and social medicine at Linköping University. Lars continued his career in marketing production and is now programme director in higher vocational education.
Ain't Gonna Miss U When U're Gone
The decision to close the critically acclaimed magazine after 12+ years was influenced by the negative atmosphere generated by Prince’s 1999 lawsuit filed against Uptown (and two other fan-run Prince publications/websites). We will not bore you with all the details (they can be found in the Uptown issues from this period as well as in The Vault). Thanks to the help of lawyer and Uptown subscriber Alex Hahn (and later Uptown staff member), Uptown was able to survive the legal battle and was freed of all charges. Although the magazine could continue, Per and Lars felt they had lost momentum and chose to pursue other interests. They both remained dedicated followers of Prince's career, albeit with slightly less intensity and passion. Per collaborated with Uptown staff member Duane Tudahl on his well-received books focusing on Prince's studio work, building on the extensive research they had originally conducted for Uptown.
The Future
Now, 20 years after Uptown closed, Per and Lars have launched this website to allow new and old fans to experience the Uptown publications once again.