Source: Michael Putland / Getty
What we gonna do here is go back. Here are some of the most notable events in entertainment for the week of November 18.
Nirvana Records Unplugged (November 18, 1993)
As we noted in our list of the Most Unforgettable Posthumous Albums of the Last 25 Years, Nirvana’s acclaimed Unplugged album was taped on November 18, 1993. The album was released after his death in 1994, debuting at No. 1 on the Billboard 200. It’s also been noted as the band’s most successful posthumous drop, earning them a Grammy for Best Alternative Album in 1996 and becoming certified 5x platinum in 1997.
Prince Releases Emancipation (November 19, 1996)
Prince changed his name to a symbol in 1993, and during the years that followed, he spent most of his time pissing folks off. His brazen middle finger to the music industry, Emancipation was the purple one’s way of saying “I’m here and I’m doing things my way—whether you like it or not.” And as Billboard notes, his 19th studio album (he released eight albums between 1990 and 1996) “was basically the ultimate double-down; a gauntlet thrown to Warner Bros. that he wasn’t spreading himself thin at all, despite his major label’s pleas.”
Despite folks being thoroughly over him by this point (did we mention the album is over two hours long?), Emancipation was one undoubtedly one of his most innovated albums. It only debuted at No. 11, but word is it became one of the best-selling triple-albums in the United States.
Prince’s Sign o’ the Times Hits Theaters Nationwide (November 20, 1987)
Purple Rain wasn’t Prince’s only venture into film. In 1987, he released Sign o’ the Times, a concert film that was entirely written and directed by the artist himself. The album was released prior, but reception was lukewarm, so the film—which was shot during his promotional tour—was released as a way to boost sales.
Tupac and Tha Dogg Pound Give Out 2,000 Turkeys (November 21, 1995)
It was this week in 1995 that Tupac, Tha Dogg Pound, Suge Knight and Danny Boy gave 2,000 turkeys to needy families at Los Angeles’ Brotherhood Crusade Headquarters. A great way to stay out of trouble and give back to the community, as Pac states himself in the clip below.
MTV Bans Madonna’s “Justify My Love” (November 23, 1990)
Watching this video in 2018 is like “what’s the big deal?” But in 1990, it was a huge one. So huge, that MTV banned the clip for being a little too—erm—provocative for television. Sure, there’s some S&M, lots of bare skin, and tons of sexual implications, but let’s be real: you can go to Instagram for all of that these days.
Of the making of the video, frequent collaborator Jean-Baptiste Mondino told Rolling Stone:
“I didn’t have any concept at all, except the idea that she was arriving in the hotel tired, broken; and when she was going to leave the hotel, she was full of life, she was full of energy, full of everything.”
Revisit the “too hot for TV” moment below:
