{{Other uses}} {{use mdy dates|date=April 2016}} {{Use American English|date=January 2021}} {{Infobox album | name = 3121 | type = studio | artist = Prince | cover = Prince - 3121.jpg | alt = | released = March 21, 2006 | recorded = November 2004 – early 2006<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://princevault.com/index.php?title=Album:_3121|title=Album: 3121 - Prince Vault|website=Princevault.com|access-date=March 21, 2025}}</ref> | studio = *Paisley Park, Chanhassen *3121 | genre = {{hlist|R&B|funk|rock|electronica}} | language = {{hlist|English|Spanish}} | length = 53:42 | label = NPG, Universal | producer = Prince | prev_title = The Slaughterhouse | prev_year = 2004 | next_title = Ultimate Prince | next_year = 2006 | misc = {{Singles | name = 3121 | type = studio | single1 = Te Amo Corazón | single1date = December 20, 2005 | single2 = Beautiful, Loved and Blessed | single2date = January 2006 | single3 = Black Sweat | single3date = February 7, 2006 | single4 = Fury | single4date = June 27, 2006 }} }} {{Music ratings |MC = 69/100<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.metacritic.com/music/3121/prince |title=3121 Reviews, Ratings, Credits, and More at Metacritic |website=Metacritic |access-date=August 5, 2012}}</ref> |rev1 = AllMusic |rev1score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref>{{AllMusic|class=album|id=r821986|tab=review |label="Prince: ''3121'' > Review" |first=Stephen Thomas |last=Erlewine |access-date=17 September 2011}}</ref> |rev2 = ''Blender'' |rev2score = {{rating|3|5}}<ref>{{cite web|last=Catucci|first=Nick|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060504080641/http://www.blender.com/guide/reviews.aspx?id=3820|archive-date=May 4, 2006|title=The purple sex machine comes to reclaim pop prominence|work=Blender|date=March 21, 2006|url=http://www.blender.com/guide/reviews.aspx?id=3820|access-date=July 15, 2018}}</ref> |rev3 = ''Entertainment Weekly'' |rev3score = C+<ref>{{cite magazine |first=Raymond |last=Fiore |url=http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,1174173,00.html |title=''3121'' (2006): Prince |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |publisher=Time |issn=1049-0434 |date=March 20, 2006 |access-date=September 3, 2011 |archive-date=October 18, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121018035751/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,1174173,00.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> |rev4 = ''Los Angeles Times'' |rev4score = {{Rating|3|4}}<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2006-mar-19-ca-rack19.1-story.html |title=The doves can stop crying now |first=Richard |last=Cromelin |date=March 19, 2006 |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |issn=0458-3035 |oclc=3638237 |access-date=September 3, 2011}}</ref> |rev5 = ''Newsday'' |rev5score = A<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.newsday.com/columnists/other-columnists/cover-story-1.640280 |title=Backstage Pass: Prince, "3121" |last=Gamboa |first=Glenn |newspaper=Newsday |date=March 20, 2006 |access-date=August 5, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061116004512/http://weblogs.newsday.com/entertainment/music/blog/2006/03/prince_3121.html |archive-date=November 16, 2006 |url-status=dead}}</ref> |rev6 = ''Pitchfork'' |rev6score = 6.0/10<ref>{{cite web |url=http://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/6481-3121/ |title=Prince: ''3121'' |first=Joe |last=Tangari |date=March 20, 2006 |website=Pitchfork |access-date=September 3, 2011}}</ref> |rev7 = ''Rolling Stone'' |rev7score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref>{{cite magazine|url=http://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/cdrev/prince-rs.php |title=Prince's New Sensation |first=Robert |last=Christgau |author-link=Robert Christgau |date=April 6, 2006 |magazine=Rolling Stone |publisher=Wenner Media |issn=0035-791X |access-date=September 3, 2011}}</ref> |rev8 = ''Spin'' |rev8score = B<ref name=Spin>{{cite web|last=Hermes|first=Will|title=Prince: 3121|work=Spin|date=May 2, 2006|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060517055943/http://www.spin.com/reviews/magazine/2006/05/0605_prince/|archive-date=May 17, 2006|url=https://www.spin.com/2006/05/prince-3121-universal/|access-date=July 15, 2018|url-status=live}}</ref> |rev9 = ''Stylus Magazine'' |rev9score = A−<ref>{{cite magazine |url=http://www.stylusmagazine.com/review.php?ID=3915 |title=Prince: ''3121'' |first=Thomas |last=Inskeep |date=March 31, 2006 |magazine=Stylus |access-date=September 3, 2011 |archive-date=October 11, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121011043911/http://www.stylusmagazine.com/review.php?ID=3915 |url-status=dead }}</ref> |rev10 = ''The Village Voice'' |rev10score = A−<ref>{{cite news|last=Christgau|first=Robert|author-link=Robert Christgau|date=May 2, 2006|url=https://www.robertchristgau.com/xg/cg/cgv506-06.php|title=Consumer Guide: Dear Mr. President|newspaper=The Village Voice|access-date=July 2, 2020|via=robertchristgau.com}}</ref> }}
'''''3121''''' (pronounced "thirty-one twenty-one") is the thirty-first studio album by American musician Prince. Released on March 21, 2006 (3/21) by NPG Records and distributed, under a "one-album deal", by Universal Music, the album reinforced Prince's big comeback after the critical success of ''Musicology'' (2004). The only Prince album ever to debut atop the ''Billboard'' 200 during his lifetime, with over 180,000 copies sold in its first week,<ref>{{cite book|author=Jason Draper|title=Prince: Life and Times: Revised and Updated Edition|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=B75NDQAAQBAJ&pg=PA173|date=November 2016|publisher=Book Sales|isbn=978-0-7858-3497-7|pages=173–}}</ref> it knocked the soundtrack for ''High School Musical'' off the top spot and became Prince's first number one album since ''Batman'' in 1989,<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/princes-3121-tops-the-chart-102051/|title=Prince's "3121" Tops the Chart|last=Orloff|first=Brian|date=2006-03-29|magazine=Rolling Stone|language=en-US|access-date=2019-12-20}}</ref> eventually being certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.riaa.com/gold-platinum/|title=Gold & Platinum|website=RIAA|language=en-US|access-date=2019-12-20}}</ref>
==Album information== The album's first single, "Te Amo Corazón", was released in the United States on December 13, 2005; the second single, "Black Sweat", was released on February 2, 2006.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |url=http://www.princevault.com/index.php?title=Album:_3121&oldid=90411 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303231058/http://www.princevault.com/index.php?title=Album:_3121&oldid=90411 |url-status=dead |archive-date=March 3, 2016 |article=3121 |encyclopedia=Prince Vault |date=August 22, 2011 |access-date=September 3, 2011}}</ref>
The album title refers to Prince's rental home at 3121 Antelo Rd, Los Angeles.<ref name="Thorne2012">{{cite book|author=Matt Thorne|title=Prince|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XkFbWY4NgYgC&pg=PT8|date=2 October 2012|publisher=Faber & Faber|isbn=978-0-571-27326-3|pages=8–}}</ref> Later homes rented by Prince were colloquially referred to as "3121", including a home owned by professional basketball player Carlos Boozer.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Richardson |first1=Brenda |title=For $30 Million, The Los Angeles Mansion That Prince Painted Purple Could Be Yours |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/brendarichardson/2020/04/18/for-30-million-the-los-angeles-mansion-that-prince-painted-purple-could-be-yours/?sh=32363e6c4128 |website=Forbes}}</ref>
Album sessions started in November 2004 with the recording of the song "3121" at Paisley Park with Michael Bland and Sonny T.<ref>{{cite magazine |last=Amendola |first=Billy |date=August 2008 |title=Michael Bland Interview |magazine=Modern Drummer }}</ref>
A limited number of albums included "purple tickets", whose finders were flown in from Europe, Asia, Mexico and the US to attend a semi-private performance (along with a long list of celebrities) at Prince's home in Los Angeles.<ref>{{cite book|author=Jason Draper|title=Prince: Life and Times: Revised and Updated Edition|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=B75NDQAAQBAJ&pg=PA171|date=November 2016|publisher=Book Sales|isbn=978-0-7858-3497-7|pages=171–}}</ref>
Tickets for Prince's The Earth Tour in 2007 at London's O2 Arena were priced at £31.21, echoing the title of this album.<ref name="getinto">{{Cite web|url=https://www.getintothis.co.uk/2017/08/prince-21-nights-at-the-o2-in-london-10-years-on-from-the-greatest-show-on-planet-earth/|title=Prince 21 Nights at the O2 in London - 10 years on from the greatest show on Planet Earth|date=August 3, 2017}}</ref>
==Track listing== All tracks are written and produced by Prince. {{Track listing | headline = ''3121'' track listing | title1 = 3121 | length1 = 4:31 | title2 = Lolita | length2 = 4:06 | title3 = Te Amo Corazón | length3 = 3:35 | title4 = Black Sweat | length4 = 3:12 | title5 = Incense and Candles | length5 = 4:04 | title6 = Love | length6 = 5:45 | title7 = Satisfied | length7 = 2:50 | title8 = Fury | length8 = 4:02 | title9 = The Word | length9 = 4:11 | title10 = Beautiful, Loved and Blessed | note10 = featuring Támar | length10 = 5:43 | title11 = The Dance | length11 = 5:20 | title12 = Get On the Boat | length12 = 6:18 }}
==Personnel== *Michael Bland (on "3121"), Cora Coleman Dunham (on "Te Amo Corazón," "Get On the Boat") – drums *Sonny T (on "3121"), Joshua Dunham (on "Te Amo Corazón," "Get On the Boat") – bass *Maceo Parker, Candy Dulfer, Greg Boyer and Ray – horn section *Herbert Urena, Ricky Salas (on "Te Amo Corazón"), Sheila E. (on "Get On the Boat") – percussion *Clare Fischer – string arrangements *The New Power Generation (shouts), Támar (and co-lead on "Beautiful, Loved and Blessed") – additional and backing vocals *Prince – all other instruments and voices '''Technical''' * Produced by Prince * Photo: Afshin Shahidi * Designer: Sam Jennings * Recorded at Paisley Park Studios and 3121 * Engineered by Ian Boxill, L. Stu Young * Assisted by Lisa Chamblee Hampton * Mastered at Bernie Grundman Mastering
==Charts== {{col-begin}} {{col-2}}
===Weekly charts=== {| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center" |+Weekly chart performance for ''3121'' ! scope="col"| Chart (2006) ! scope="col"| Peak<br /> position |- {{album chart|Australia|18|artist=Prince|album=3121|rowheader=true|access-date=May 2, 2016}} |- {{album chart|Austria|15|artist=Prince|album=3121|rowheader=true|access-date=May 2, 2016}} |- {{album chart|Flanders|3|artist=Prince|album=3121|rowheader=true|access-date=May 2, 2016}} |- {{album chart|Wallonia|15|artist=Prince|album=3121|rowheader=true|access-date=May 2, 2016}} |- {{album chart|BillboardCanada|9|artist=Prince|rowheader=true|access-date=November 6, 2025}} |- {{album chart|Denmark|2|artist=Prince|album=3121|rowheader=true|access-date=May 2, 2016}} |- {{album chart|Netherlands|3|artist=Prince|album=3121|rowheader=true|access-date=May 2, 2016}} |- {{album chart|Finland|24|artist=Prince|album=3121|rowheader=true|access-date=May 2, 2016}} |- {{album chart|France|8|artist=Prince|album=3121|rowheader=true|access-date=May 2, 2016}} |- {{album chart|Germany|4|id=31624|artist=Prince|album=3121|rowheader=true|access-date=May 2, 2016}} |- {{album chart|Italy|10|artist=Prince|album=3121|rowheader=true|access-date=May 2, 2016}} |- {{album chart|Norway|5|artist=Prince|album=3121|rowheader=true|access-date=May 2, 2016}} |- {{album chart|Poland|13|artist=Prince|album=3121|rowheader=true|access-date=April 3, 2006}} |- {{album chart|Scotland|8|date=20060326|rowheader=true|access-date=November 6, 2025}} |- {{album chart|Spain|40|artist=Prince|album=3121|rowheader=true|access-date=May 2, 2016}} |- {{album chart|Sweden|18|artist=Prince|album=3121|rowheader=true|access-date=May 2, 2016}} |- {{album chart|Switzerland|1|artist=Prince|album=3121|rowheader=true|access-date=May 2, 2016}} |- {{album chart|UK2|9|date=20060326|artist=Prince|rowheader=true|access-date=May 2, 2016}} |- {{album chart|UKR&B|2|date=20060326|rowheader=true|access-date=6 November 2025}} |- {{album chart|Billboard200|1|artist=Prince|rowheader=true|access-date=May 2, 2016}} |- {{album chart|BillboardTastemaker|1|artist=Prince|rowheader=true|access-date=November 6, 2025}} |- {{album chart|BillboardRandBHipHop|1|artist=Prince|rowheader=true|access-date=July 29, 2020}} |} {{col-2}}
===Year-end charts=== {| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center" |+Year-end chart performance for ''3121'' ! scope="col"| Chart (2006) ! scope="col"| Position |- ! scope="row"| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ultratop.be/nl/annual.asp?year=2006&cat=a|title=Jaaroverzichten 2006|publisher=Ultratop|access-date=July 29, 2020}}</ref> | 75 |- ! scope="row"| Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://dutchcharts.nl/jaaroverzichten.asp?year=2006&cat=a|title=Jaaroverzichten – Album 2006|website=dutchcharts.nl|access-date=July 29, 2020}}</ref> | 53 |- ! scope="row"| French Albums (SNEP)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://snepmusique.com/les-tops/le-top-de-lannee/top-albums-annee/?annee=2006|title=Top de l'année Top Albums 2006|publisher=SNEP|language=fr|access-date=July 29, 2020}}</ref> | 193 |- ! scope="row"| German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.offiziellecharts.de/charts/album-jahr/for-date-2006|title=Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts|language=de|work=GfK Entertainment|publisher=offiziellecharts.de|access-date=July 29, 2020}}</ref> | 97 |- ! scope="row"| Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://hitparade.ch/charts/jahreshitparade/2006|title=Schweizer Jahreshitparade 2006|website=hitparade.ch|access-date=July 29, 2020}}</ref> | 60 |- ! scope="row"| US ''Billboard'' 200<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/charts/year-end/2006/top-billboard-200-albums|title=Top Billboard 200 Albums – Year-End 2006|magazine=Billboard|access-date=July 29, 2020}}</ref> | 134 |- ! scope="row"| US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (''Billboard'')<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/charts/year-end/2006/top-r-and-b-hip-hop-albums|title=Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums – Year-End 2006|magazine=Billboard|access-date=July 29, 2020}}</ref> | 46 |} {{col-end}}
==Certifications== {{Certification Table Top|caption=Certifications for ''3121''}} {{Certification Table Entry|region=Switzerland|title=3121|type=album|artist=Prince|relyear=2006|award=Gold|certyear=2006|access-date=11 September 2019}} {{Certification Table Entry|region=United Kingdom|title=3121|type=album|artist=Prince|relyear=2006|award=Silver|id=12180-1115-2}} {{Certification Table Entry|region=United States|title=3121|type=album|artist=Prince|relyear=2006|award=Gold}} {{Certification Table Bottom | nosales=true}}
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== * [https://web.archive.org/web/20060224133843/http://www.3121countdown.com/ ''3121'' countdown and contest details] * {{Metacritic album|title=3121}}
{{Prince albums}} {{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:3121 (Album)}} Category:2006 albums Category:Prince (musician) albums Category:Albums produced by Prince (musician) Category:NPG Records albums Category:Universal Records albums