André Cymone

André Cymone (born Andre Simon Anderson; June 27, 1958) is an American bassist, songwriter and record producer. He was a bass guitarist for Prince's touring band, pre-Revolution. In 1981, Cymone broke from Prince's band and began a solo career. As a solo artist, he released Livin' in the New Wave, Survivin' in the 80's and A.C., all of which were well-received studio albums. The fusion of new wave and funk explored on these albums spawned half a dozen hit R&B singles. His song "The Dance Electric" was written by Prince and reached #10 on the R&B charts in 1985. Cymone later co-wrote and produced hit songs for other acts, including his then wife Jody Watley's "Looking for a New Love" and "Real Love".

With his futurist Minneapolis vision, Cymone has been credited with creating some of the most innovative music during the late 1970s and 1980s, and is regarded as an unsung architect of Minneapolis' identity as a music capital.

Cymone's stage name comes from a variation of his middle name, Simon.

Biography Early years Cymone was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The son of Fred Anderson, a musician, and Bernadette, a social worker, Cymone was the youngest of six children. The Anderson home soon had an additional member – a young Prince, who left his own home due to conflicts with his father. The band included Cymone's sister Linda and Morris Day — they later changed their name to Champagne due to being confused with the funk band Graham Central Station.

His song "Better Way", performed by James Ingram, and "Love/Hate", performed by Pebbles were featured on the Beverly Hills Cop II soundtrack released in 1987. Cymone stepped away from the spotlight in the late 1980s, to focus on raising his children while channeling his creative urges into a variety of writing projects.

In late May 2013, Cymone appeared alongside former Revolution member Bobby Z on a web-based video chat forum co-hosted by celebrity blogger Dr. Funkenberry, where he went into greater detail about the writing of the song and the hopes for his new album.

In November 2013, the album, titled The Stone, became available for pre-order in various exclusive packages on the site PledgeMusic. The packages included early MP3 downloads, signed CDs and one-off personalised items. The Stone was released on February 18, 2014. on April 7, 2017, via Bandcamp and iTunes.

Discography Albums and EPs Livin' in the New Wave (1982) Survivin' in the 80's (1983) A.C. (1985) The Stone (2014) Black Man In America EP (2016) 1969 (2017) The Resurrection of Funk (2026)

Singles "Livin' in the New Wave" (1982) "Kelly's Eyes" (1982) "Survivin' in the 80's" (1983) "Make Me Wanna Dance" (1983) "What Are We Doing Here" (1983) "Body Thang" (1983) "The Dance Electric" (1985) "Satisfaction" (1985) "Lipstick Lover" (1985) "America" (2012) "American Dream" (2012) "Trayvon" (2013) "Naked (Harts Remix)" (2014) "Vote" (2014) "Bounce" (2015) "Give Peace A Chance (2015)" (2015) "VOTE! 2018" (2018) "Our World Is On Fire" (2020) "Funk is Alive" (2024) "Hot Funk in the Summertime" (2024)