Section 1 Short title
This Act may be cited as the “Prince Congressional Gold Medal Act”.
Prince Congressional Gold Medal Act
A BILL
To posthumously award a Congressional Gold Medal to Prince Rogers Nelson in recognition of his achievements and contributions to the culture of the United States.
Sec. 2 Findings
Congress finds the following:
Prince Rogers Nelson (referred to in this Act as “Prince”) was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on June 7, 1958, the son of jazz singer Mattie Della (née Shaw) and pianist and songwriter John Louis Nelson. Widely regarded as one of the greatest musicians of his generation, Prince’s innovative music incorporated elements of rock, R&B, funk, hip-hop, new wave, synth-pop, and jazz.
Prince released 39 albums during his lifetime and produced countless others, along with many unreleased projects left in a vault at his home.
Recognized as a musical prodigy from an early age, Prince signed a recording contract with Warner Brothers Records at the age of 19, writing, producing, arranging, and playing all 27 instruments on the recording.
Prince’s 1984 album “Purple Rain” spent 6 consecutive months as the number 1 record on the Billboard 200 chart, spawning 5 top-10 hits, including “When Doves Cry” and the title track. The film “Purple Rain” won Prince the Academy Award for Best Original Song Score and, in 2019, was added by the Library of Congress for preservation in the National Film Registry for being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant”.
Prince’s 1987 double album “Sign o’ the Times” included more than 80 minutes of music almost entirely composed and performed by Prince and would go on to become his most acclaimed record, including being voted 1987’s best album in the Pazz & Jop Critics’ Poll. In 2017, the album was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.
A prolific composer, Prince wrote many songs made famous by other musicians, including “Nothing Compares 2 U”, “Manic Monday”, and “I Feel For You”.
An advocate for artistic freedom and expression, Prince—
changed his name to a symbol (commonly known as the “Prince Symbol”) to protest the terms of his recording contract and the recording industry’s treatment of all artists; and
publicly advocated for artists to be able to maintain ownership of their own master recordings.
A lifelong Minnesota resident, Prince was a participant in, and supporter of, the local Minneapolis arts community, memorialized in songs like “Uptown”.
Though he did not speak publicly of his charity work, Prince was an animal rights activist and a philanthropist.
Prince sold more than 150,000,000 records worldwide, ranking among the best selling artists of all time.
Prince was one of the most acclaimed artists of all time and he and his music were recognized as follows:
Prince won 7 Grammy Awards, 7 Brit Awards, 6 American Music Awards, 4 MTV Video Music Awards, an Academy Award for Best Original Song Score for the film “Purple Rain”, and a Golden Globe Award.
Prince was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2004, the UK Music Hall of Fame in 2006, and the Rhythm and Blues Music Hall of Fame in 2016.
Prince received the BET Lifetime Achievement Award in 2010.
In 2016, Prince was posthumously honored with a doctor of humane letters by the University of Minnesota.
Two of Prince’s albums, “Purple Rain” and “Sign o’ the Times”, received nominations for the Grammy Award for Album of the Year.
At the 28th Grammy Awards, Prince was awarded the President’s Merit Award.
Prince was honored with the American Music Award for Achievement and the American Music Award of Merit at the American Music Awards of 1990 and 1995, respectively.
At the 2013 Billboard Music Awards, Prince was honored with the Billboard Icon Award.
Prince transcended this earthly plane on April 21, 2016, in his Minnesota home, at 57 years of age, leaving behind a legacy of musical achievement and an indelible mark on Minnesota and the culture of the United States.
Sec. 3 Congressional gold medal
Presentation authorized— The Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate shall make appropriate arrangements for the posthumous presentation, on behalf of Congress, of a gold medal of appropriate design in commemoration of Prince, in recognition of his achievements and contributions to the culture of the United States.
Design and striking— For purposes of the presentation referred to in subsection (a), the Secretary of the Treasury (referred to in this Act as the “Secretary”) shall strike a gold medal with suitable emblems, devices, and inscriptions, to be determined by the Secretary.
Smithsonian institution—
In general— Following the award of the gold medal in honor of Prince under subsection (a), the gold medal shall be given to the Smithsonian Institution, where it shall be—
available for display, as appropriate; and
made available for research.
Sense of Congress— It is the sense of Congress that the Smithsonian Institution should make the gold medal received under paragraph (1) available for display, particularly at the National Museum of African American History and Culture, or for loan, as appropriate, so that the gold medal may be displayed elsewhere, particularly at other appropriate locations associated with the life of Prince.
Sec. 4 Duplicate medals
The Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in bronze of the gold medal struck pursuant to section 3 under such regulations as the Secretary may prescribe, at a price sufficient to cover the cost thereof, including labor, materials, dies, use of machinery, and overhead expenses.
Sec. 5 Status of medals
National medals— The medals struck under this Act are national medals for purposes of chapter 51 of title 31, United States Code.
Numismatic items— For purposes of sections 5134 and 5136 of title 31, United States Code, all medals struck under this Act shall be considered to be numismatic items.