Prince Hits His Target

Maybe Target should recolor its corporate logo purple.

Prince is the latest to jump on the exclusive retail bandwagon, inking a deal with Target stores to be the sole carriers of his three-disc set of new studio recordings. The collection is composed of two new albums, LOtUSFLOW3R and MPLSoUND, and an introductory album by his latest protégé, Bria Valente.

Target will bundle all three albums in a set for $11.98, available for purchase in the brick & mortars as well as online at Target.com March 29.

The retailer has some experience with album exclusives – Christina Aguilera distributed her greatest hits collection exclusively through Target stores last year.
“Prince has long been renowned as one of the world’s most original and iconic musical artists,” Target senior VP Mark Schindele said in a statement. “We are thrilled to have the opportunity to share his most recent work with our Target guests.”

Seems like a natural for the Purple One, who famously changed his name to a symbol rather than record for a label in the 1990s. As artists like Eagles and Aguilera look to Walmart and Target stores to distribute product, it’s less of a surprise when other big-name acts follow suit.

The jury isn’t completely in on the practice; the Best Buy distribution of Guns N’ Roses’ Chinese Democracy fell short of expectations last year and was blamed in part for the big box retailer’s subsequent financial woes.