Songfacts®:

• Prince is one of the most influential musicians who ever lived, but in "Musicology" he pays tribute to his influences, namechecking these artists:
  
  Earth, Wind & Fire (particularly the songs "September" and "Let's Groove")
  James Brown
  Sly & the Family Stone
  Jam Master Jay of Run DMC
  Chuck D of Public Enemy
  
  Jam Master Jay was killed in a 2002 shooting, two years before this song was released.
• "Musicology" marked a return to more accessible music for Prince, both in sound and format. It's the first single and title track from his 2004 album, his first on a major label (distributed by Columbia through his NPG Records) since Rave Un2 The Joy Fantastic in 1999. Prince broke ranks with his label, Warner Bros., in 1993 and changed his name to an unpronounceable symbol. His fanbase dwindled as radio stopped playing his new songs, which he typically didn't promote. He changed his name back to Prince in 2000, and in 2001 he started the NPG Music Club to take music directly to his core fans, but that narrowed his audience even further. "Musicology" was his first song in a while that got the attention of casual fans. It got airplay and even charted (at #120, but it was his first charting song since "The Greatest Romance Ever Sold" went to #63 in 1999). The next single, the sultry "Call My Name," reached #75.
  
  It was part of a popular resurgence by Prince, who was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2004 a month before the "Musicology" single was issued.
• Prince gave away the Musicology album to everyone who attended his 2004 tour, the top-grossing tour of the year. When you entered the venue, someone handed you the CD. For certification purposes, these CDs counted as sales because technically you were buying the album along with the ticket. This helped Musicology earn Double Platinum certification (2 million copies) and to to #3 on the Billboard albums chart. The RIAA and Billboard soon changed their methodology to stop these kind of shenanigans.
• The music video follows a young Prince as he rides his bike to a record store and buys the "Musicology" single. He plays it on his record player, and we see modern-day Prince performing the song with his band in a classy venue. It was directed by Sanaa Hamri, who went on to direct Prince's videos for "Black Sweat" and "Fury." The video was included as a CD-ROM with the album, but not on the copies handed out at concerts.
• Prince won for Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance at the Grammy Awards in 2005, while "Call My Name" took Best Male R&B Vocal Performance. The previous year, Prince opened the ceremony with Beyoncé, performing a medley of their hits.
  
  These were Prince's first Grammys since 1988, when "Kiss" won for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals.