Prince Rogers Nelson has transitioned. Inglewoodians have Prince to thank for single handledly proving that the Forum AND the city of Inglewood were viable venues to invest in. For it was his concert series in 2011 that set gentrification in motion in the City of Champions.
Related: Prince Kicks Off 21-Concert Residency With Epic Three-Hour Show
For the modest fee of $25/ticket, Prince fans came far and wide to Inglewood to see him perform.
Playing encore after encore, Prince was joined by a “who’s who” of celebrity guests, every night he took the stage. After every concert, interest grew. Once you heard who was there the night before, you immediately looked into buying tickets for the next show.
Facebook was popping with the sharing of pictures and memories of having seen PRINCE at the FORUM in INGLEWOOD for ONLY twenty-five dollars. It was too good to be true. I personally attended three shows.
The city made money from admission and parking tax and elected officials began to see the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel.
Rolling Stone magazine quoted the Purple One after his opening night performance back in April 2011:
“Inglewood is mine!” shouted Prince – and after two hours of thrilling music, no one could doubt him.
After the successful tour, Madison Square Garden purchased The Forum and spent upwards of $100 million dollars to upgrade the facility. Next came the announcement of the NFL returning to the Los Angeles market. Specifically, the Rams organization would be playing in Inglewood, CA, with offices located in Thousand Oaks, CA.
Fans were startled to hear the news that the pop star was gone. It was only a couple of days ago we learned of his plane making an emergency landing for him to go to the hospital. He emerged and assured fans he was ok. “Wait a few days before you waste any prayers,” Prince reportedly told concert attendees last week in Atlanta. He would be dead less than a week later.
Inglewood owes its revitalization to the diminutive pop star. Had Prince not come to town, where would we be now?
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Yep.