Lincoln Junior High School

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Prince attended his neighborhood school, John Hay Elementary (demolished), until the end of third grade (1964-1967). For his fourth grade year in 1967-1968, his family enrolled him in a voluntary program that bussed him to Kenwood Elementary School, which was located in a predominantly white neighborhood four miles south. Prince returned to John Hay for fifth grade (1968-1969) and then moved next door to Lincoln Junior High School. That’s where he met André Cymone, who would become a friend and critical musical collaborator. Cymone later remembered: “I didn’t know anybody then, literally. Mr. Lee, who was the gym teacher, gave you your schedule and said, ‘Stand against the wall.’ And I’ll never forget it, because I looked along the wall and there was like, I don’t know, 40, 50 people . . . and I just didn’t know anybody. And I finally saw this one guy, and I thought he looked interesting . . . like somebody I could probably hang out with. So I went and stood next to him….I said, ‘Hey, man, how you doing? I’m André.’ He says he’s Prince. I said, ‘Prince. OK. What are you into?’ He says, ‘I play music.’ I said, ‘That’s interesting. I play music too.’ He said, ‘Oh.’” André soon joined Prince and Charles's band as the bass player.