Prince Igor (song)

"Prince Igor" is a 1997 song inspired by the Polovtsian Dances of Borodin's opera Prince Igor. It was released as the lead single from the album, The Rapsody Overture in October 1997. The main vocals are performed by Warren G, the Russian refrain by acclaimed Norwegian soprano Sissel Kyrkjebø and the instrumental background is provided by The Rapsody. Warren G uses the same rap lyrics as in his song "Reality", available on the album Take a Look Over Your Shoulder. "Prince Igor" was very successful in Europe, peaking at number-one in both Iceland and Norway. In addition, the single reached the top 10 in Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, the Netherlands and Sweden. On the Eurochart Hot 100, the song peaked at number six in January 1998. Outside Europe, it peaked at number 41 in New Zealand.

"Prince Igor"
Single by The Rapsody feat. Warren G & Sissel
from the album The Rapsody Overture
ReleasedOctober 13, 1997
Genre
LabelDef Jam Recordings
Songwriter(s)
  • Klaus Volker
  • Warren G
Producer(s)
  • Klaus Volker
  • Dieter Völker
Warren G singles chronology
"Smokin' Me Out"
(1997)		 "Prince Igor"
(1997)		 "All Right, All Night"
(1998)
Sissel singles chronology
"Mitt hjerte alltid vanker"
(1995)		 "Prince Igor"
(1997)		 "Summer Snow"
(2000)

Critical reception

Pan-European magazine Music & Media wrote, "Maybe it had to happen at some point... so blame the Voelker brothers (Achim and Klaus), a German production team who initially came up with the unlikely idea of an album combining rap with opera. This is the first single to be taken from the resulting long player, The Rapsody Overture: Hip Hop Meets Classics (due on November 3). The single uses Borodin's Prince Igor as a foundation over which Warren G raps and Norwegian folk singer Sissel provides "classical" vocals."

Programme director Marc Stingl at German AC commercial station Radio Gong in Nurnberg, Bavaria considered the track to be "a perfect chartbreaker because of the combination of rap with classical music. The Rapsody is refreshingly different because this has not really been tried before and most other chart material is pretty old-fashioned." He concluded, "This could very well be a new trend-a band called Sweetbox have been quite successful over here with a similar approach."[1]

A reviewer from Music Week gave the song three out of five, describing it as "[a] bizarre and haunting blend of hip hop and classical."[2] The magazine's Alan Jones wrote, "Whether it's a groudbreaker or a dead-end mutant remains to be seen but The Rapsody, US rapper Warren G's collaboration with Norwegian opera star Sissel is both intriguing and appealing. Set against a heavy hip-hop beat, Warren struts his usual stuff but the rapper/vocalist combination is given a new spin by Sissel, whose pure soprano voice intones the melody from Borodin's Prince Igor".[3]

Track list
  • "Prince Igor" (Radio Edit) (3:52)
  • "Prince Igor" (Ries Class Jazz Edit) (4:03)
  • "Prince Igor" (Ries 7" Remix) (3:54)
  • "Prince Igor" (Album Version) (4:24)
  • "Prince Igor" (Ries Class Jazz Extended) (6:08)
  • "Prince Igor" (Ries Class Jazz Instrumental) (4:01)

Charts

References
  1. "Airborne" (PDF). Music & Media. November 1, 1997. p. 21. Retrieved December 23, 2019.
  2. "Reviews: Singles" (PDF). Music Week. November 29, 1997. p. 14. Retrieved September 20, 2022.
  3. Jones, Alan (December 27, 1997). "Talking Music" (PDF). Music Week. p. 21. Retrieved October 1, 2022.
  4. "The Rapsody feat. Warren G & Sissel – Prince Igor" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40.
  5. "The Rapsody feat. Warren G & Sissel – Prince Igor" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
  6. "The Rapsody feat. Warren G & Sissel – Prince Igor" (in French). Ultratop 50.
  7. "Top National Sellers" (PDF). Music & Media. January 31, 1998. Retrieved May 4, 2018.
  8. "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. January 24, 1998. Retrieved June 22, 2018.
  9. "The Rapsody feat. Warren G. & Sissel: Prince Igor" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat.
  10. "The Rapsody feat. Warren G & Sissel – Prince Igor" (in French). Les classement single.
  11. "The Rapsody feat. Warren G & Sissel – Prince Igor" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved December 30, 2020.
  12. "Top National Sellers" (PDF). Music & Media. February 21, 1998. Retrieved May 4, 2018.
  13. "Íslenski Listinn Topp 40 (25.12.1997 - 01.01.1998)" (PDF) (in Icelandic). Dagblaðið Vísir - Tónlist. Retrieved February 6, 2018.
  14. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Prince Igor". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved December 30, 2020.
  15. "Nederlandse Top 40 – The Rapsody feat. Warren G & Sissel" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40.
  16. "The Rapsody feat. Warren G & Sissel – Prince Igor" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
  17. "The Rapsody feat. Warren G & Sissel – Prince Igor". Top 40 Singles.
  18. "The Rapsody feat. Warren G & Sissel – Prince Igor". VG-lista.
  19. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 8, 2018.
  20. "The Rapsody feat. Warren G & Sissel – Prince Igor". Singles Top 100.
  21. "The Rapsody feat. Warren G & Sissel – Prince Igor". Swiss Singles Chart.
  22. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved December 30, 2020.
  23. "Official Hip Hop and R&B Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved December 30, 2020.
  24. "Top 100 Single-Jahrescharts" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved April 17, 2018.
  25. "Top 100-Jaaroverzicht van 1997". Dutch Top 40. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
  26. "Jaaroverzichten – Single 1997". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
  27. "Romanian Top 100: Top of the Year 1997" (in Romanian). Romanian Top 100. Archived from the original on September 22, 2005.
  28. "Årslista Singlar – År 1997" (in Swedish). Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
  29. "Jaaroverzichten 1998". Ultratop. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
  30. "Rapports Annuels 1998". Ultratop. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
  31. "Music & Media: Eurochart Hot 100 Singles 1998" (PDF). Music & Media. December 19, 1998. Retrieved June 20, 2018.
  32. "Jaaroverzichten – Single 1998". dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
  33. "Årslista Singlar – År 1998" (in Swedish). Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved March 2, 2020.
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