About #SexyMF30

#SexyMF30 was a 2-day virtual symposium, celebrating Prince for 30 years of the Love Symbol album, on 26-27 March 2022 (Sat-Sun)!

There were 31 speakers (academics, music journalists, podcasters, authors, and independent scholars), 3 roundtable discussions, and 12 presentations!

We had 479 people register on the Airmeet platform from 22 countries including the US, UK, Canada, Netherlands, Australia, Belgium, France, Germany, Japan, Spain, and India. We also had international speakers from the UK, the Netherlands, and Scotland. There was a steady-state of, approximately, 160 to 220 people at ALL times over the course of 2 days for approximately 8-9 hours per day.

This event was FREE, but please consider donating to the PRN Alumni Foundation, a 501c3 non-profit officially formed in 2017 and founded by former employees of Paisley Park and the international icon Prince. The group’s mission is to continue the generosity of their late boss who supported opportunities for underprivileged youth to grow in music, tech, arts, and education, and helped alumni members in need. The foundation also supports urban farming initiatives that create sources of healthy foods where they are otherwise scarce. To learn more about the PRN Alumni Foundation, visit prnalumni.org.

#SexyMF30 was a polished solid production, curated by De Angela L. Duff.

THANK YOU to every single speaker, sponsor, attendee, virtual booth contributor, and last but definitely not least my tiny, but mighty team, Arthur Turnbull & Krysta Battersby, as well as Nicolay for the music and his continued unwavering support!

Also a very special thanks to the Core 4: Zaheer Ali, Anil Dash, Miles Marshall Lewis, and Elliott H. Powell who have been with me at every. single. Prince symposia or event I’ve ever curated! #SexyMF30 marks our 9th Prince roundtable together! I am eternally grateful!💜

And another very special thanks to Marco ‘T Hart of 9t99.com art for the symposium graphics!💜

And, of course, massive thanks to our wonderful sponsors: NYU Tandon, NYU Integrated Design & Media (IDM), NYU Office of Global Inclusion, Diversity, and Strategic Innovation, NYU Institute of African American Affairs and the Center for Black Visual Culture, NYU Photography & Imaging, NYU Center for the Study of Gender and Sexuality, NYU 370 Jay Project, NYU Liberal Studies, and NYU Clive Davis Institute of Recorded Music!

In 2017, De Angela L. Duff was introduced to Mable Ivory by Deanna Martin in front of Webster Hall in NYC, after a performance by The Revolution. Spontaneously, they decided to grab some dinner. De Angela casually mentioned that she very much wanted to watch the Sign O’ The Times film together with some Prince friends in a small screening room at NYU. Mable responded, “Why do you want to do that, when it can be much bigger?” And that is how it all began.

De Angela owes immense gratitude to Mable for encouraging her to think on a grander scale and to Deanna for introducing her to Mable. She is grateful for the journey and indebted to Mable Ivory for getting her to dream bigger. With Ron Worthy also on board, the Peach + Black panel and screening was born within weeks.

In response to the reception of the event, De Angela realized that this work was important to the Prince community and for exposing new people to Prince’s full body of work.

The original peach + black panel of Zaheer Ali, Anil Dash, Miles Marshall Lewis, and Elliott Powell, moderated by De Angela herself, has convened in every Prince symposium that De Angela has created since. She is eternally grateful for their continued participation and Prince passion.

#SexyMF30 marks De Angela’s 9th Prince event. Her mission is to keep Prince’s name on the lips of the children and in constant and critical dialogue.