Portions of previously unheard Prince songs were played during the CBS news program 60 Minutes.

The segment focussed on Prince’s legacy, the treasure trove of unreleased music in his vault and the continued efforts by his estate to bring his material to the world.

While visiting Paisley Park for the piece, 60 Minutes reporter Jon Wertheim was given a sample of the upcoming Welcome 2 America album, due for release July 30.

After first previewing the LP’s politically charged title track - which had been released prior to the show - viewers got a taste of two previously unheard songs.

“Check the Record” sees Prince invoking his famous wit - and penchant sexual innuendo. “Let's check the record, see what it said / Seems like your girlfriend was in my bed,” the singer croons, his guitar crunching in the background over a dynamic beat.

Meanwhile, on "Born 2 Die” Prince utilizes his famous falsetto, singing, “Here she comes. She sells everything, A to Z. Anything just to keep her free.”

As 60 Minutes noted, Prince wrote, sang, and performed the majority of the instruments on all of Welcome 2 America’s songs.

Asked why the music icon shelved the album back in 2010, Prince's keyboardist and musical director Morris Hayes was unsure.

“I remember asking him about it,” Hayes recalled. “And he says, ‘Well, we'll just have to revisit that down the line.’ 'Cause he was just onto the next project.”

Though the material on Welcome 2 America is more than a decade old, its themes of racial inequality and social injustice echo in today’s America.

“Prince knew about that firsthand,” explained his longtime backing singer Shelby J. “He knew what that was. And he could write about it and he could sing about it. When you got Breonna Taylor, you got Ahmaud Arbery, you got the George Floyd goin' on, it's like we are, the movement is happening. And I think that the world is ready to absorb what he's saying on this album. I mean it's right on time.”

 

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