Evan Serpick, ROLLING STONE
BALTIMORE (Rolling Stone) — Two weeks after protests in Baltimore brought national attention to the death of Freddie Gray while he was in police custody, Prince came to town for a “Rally 4 Peace” – a surprise concert that turned into an epic two-and-a-half-hour jam session with a dream set list and appearances by Doug E. Fresh, Estelle, Miguel and State’s Attorney Marilyn Mosby.
“I am your servant tonight, Baltimore,” Prince told the Royal Farms Arena crowd, much of which was wearing gray as instructed by the concert poster. “We are your house band.”
After blasting off with favorites “Let’s Go Crazy,” “Take Me With U” and “Raspberry Beret,” Prince launched into “Baltimore,” a song about the city’s struggles that he had released just over 24 hours earlier. “Does anybody hear us pray?/For Michael Brown or Freddie Gray,” Prince sang. “Peace is more than the absence of war.”
###