Minnesota's Impact On 80s Music

When you think of the 1980s and how music from Minnesota was a part of that, naturally you think of Prince. There’s no doubt he was the dominant artist from our state. But there were more artists from Minnesota that helped our state leave a significant footprint on the 80s music scene.

This All 80s playlist is about 80s music that was either performed by artists from Minnesota or produced in Minnesota or by Minnesotans. A few might surprise you.

Prince - "I Could Never Take The Place Of Your Man"

Let's start this Minnesota 80s Music playlist with The Man and one of my favorite songs from my favorite Prince album.

Information Society - "What's On Your Mind"

They are from the Twin Cities and were Macalester College students in the early 80s. Next time you are near First Avenue, look for their star on the outside mural.

Janet Jackson - "When I Think Of You"

Janet's five most successful albums were produced and recorded at Flyte Tyme studios by the very successful producing duo, Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis. They're actually on this list a few times.

The Time - "The Bird"

My wife and I saw Prince in 2004 at Xcel, the same year he was inducted into the R n' R Hall of Fame. We had no idea who was opening for him or if anyone was. Imagine our surprise when Morris Day and The Time kicked off the show. We were flapping along with the ten of thousands of other fans during this song.

The Replacements - "I'll Be You"

A local favorite, The Replacements saw moderate success before Paul Westerberg went off on his own solo career.

The Jets - "Crush On You"

The Jets were from Robbinsdale, MN, and just like the Jacksons, the Osmonds, and The Beach Boys, they were a pop group made up of siblings. They had five Top 10 hits including 'Rocket 2 U", "Make It Real" and "You Got It All". I remember when I was working at a radio station here in St. Cloud and Becker High School won a contest to have The Jets play at their school.

Human League - "Human"

If you're wondering what this song is doing on the list, then you would be surprised to know that this song was both written and produced by Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis. I told you they would be on the list again. You probably weren't expecting this though.

Alexander O'Neal - "Fake"

Fun Fact: O' Neal was the original lead singer of The Time before Prince replaced him with Morris Day. 'Fake' was his biggest hit but failed to crack the Top 20. But I remember it being played a lot on Minneapolis radio stations.