Prince’s 3121 is returning in an expanded campaign that puts studio recordings, previously unreleased material and a 2007 Las Vegas performance alongside one another. NPG Records and the Prince Estate plan to release 3121 Expanded Edition on December 11 in digital form, as well as 3LP + Blu-ray and 2CD + Blu-ray configurations.
The project is accompanied by two connected releases built around Prince’s January 20, 2007 Las Vegas show. Prince: 3121 Las Vegas Concert, a 154-minute concert film, is scheduled for a limited theatrical run in the United States and Canada beginning December 3, with tickets going on sale November 11. Meanwhile, 3121 Las Vegas Live will arrive November 27, for Record Store Day Black Friday, on triple-LP crystal blue vinyl and 2CD.
That makes this more than a conventional album reissue. Listeners interested in the original studio record have the album itself and a set of additional recordings to explore digitally; fans of Prince as a performer have a lengthy filmed show and a separately sequenced live album; and physical-media buyers have distinct formats to weigh rather than one all-purpose package.
A major chart moment in Prince’s catalog
3121 was originally released on March 21, 2006 through NPG Records and Universal Music. It was Prince’s first album to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, and his fourth album to reach the top of that chart. Those details give the release a particularly clear place in his extensive body of work: it was not simply another catalog entry, but a commercial high point from the 2000s.
The 12-track original album remains central to the expanded edition. Its sequence runs from the title track through “Lolita,” “Te Amo Corazón,” “Black Sweat,” “Love,” “Fury,” “The Word” and “Get On the Boat.” The returning album is therefore not being replaced or recut around bonus material. The supplementary recordings sit beside the original program rather than altering its established 12-song structure.
That distinction matters for anyone encountering the album for the first time. An expanded edition can mean several different things: a remaster, a new mix, a complete reconstruction of an album, or simply an original album joined by extra audio. Here, the announced digital version is described as the original 12 tracks paired with 10 additional raw recordings. The supplied information does not specify a new mix or remaster, so the safer reading is that the attraction is the added material and concert footage, not a stated overhaul of the album’s sound.
What the expanded digital edition adds
The additional recordings offer alternate perspectives on three songs from 3121: “The Word,” “Love” and “Te Amo Corazón” appear in acoustic versions. In practical terms, an acoustic version usually denotes an arrangement focused more closely on acoustic instrumentation and vocal or melodic structure than a fuller studio production. The announcements do not detail the instrumentation or recording circumstances for these takes, so listeners should not assume more than the acoustic designation itself.
The remaining vault selections include “Time of Ur Life,” “The Streets of Panama,” “Another Girl,” “Elixer,” “Glass Cutter,” “Ur’e Such A Tease” and “Girls In the Band.” “Vault recordings” is a useful release term: it identifies recordings drawn from an archive and made available beyond the original album sequence. It does not, by itself, establish when every track was recorded, whether it was intended for 3121, or how finished each performance was. The announcement does call the 10 additions raw recordings, an important qualifier for fans expecting polished alternate versions.
Expanded edition tracklist
Original album
- 3121
- Lolita
- Te Amo Corazón
- Black Sweat
- Incense and Candles
- Love
- Satisfie
- Fury
- The Word
- Beautiful, Loved and Blessed
- The Dance
- Get On the Boat
Additional vault recordings
- Time of Ur Life
- The Streets of Panama
- Another Girl
- The Word (Acoustic)
- Elixer
- Glass Cutter
- Love (Acoustic)
- Ur’e Such A Tease
- Te Amo Corazón (Acoustic)
- Girls In the Band
There is one format detail worth keeping straight before choosing an edition. The digital expanded release is specifically described as pairing the original album with the 10 additional recordings. The physical editions are described as pairing 3121 with a Blu-ray of concert footage filmed in Las Vegas in 2007. The announced information does not explicitly state that the 10 vault tracks are included on every physical configuration, so buyers who want the additional studio material should check final product listings and track breakdowns rather than presume identical contents across digital, vinyl and CD/Blu-ray versions.
The Las Vegas concert: catalog-spanning rather than album-only
The live component substantially broadens the scope. 3121 Las Vegas Live captures more than two hours from Prince’s January 20, 2007 performance in Las Vegas, while the concert film runs 154 minutes. Rather than presenting a start-to-finish rendition of 3121, the documented set moves through different periods of Prince’s catalog, incorporates selections from 3121 and Musicology, and includes covers.
For a live release, that kind of programming is significant. A concert constructed around a current album can make the newer material the sole focus; this one places songs such as “Lolita,” “Black Sweat” and “Get On the Boat” in a wider set beside “Purple Rain,” “Kiss,” “If I Was Your Girlfriend,” “Cream” and “U Got the Look.” It is a useful opportunity to hear the 3121 period in dialogue with songs from across Prince’s career, rather than isolated as a studio-era snapshot.
The show also includes “Shhh,” “Musicology / Prince And The Band,” “Pass the Peas,” “I Never Loved A Man (The Way I Love You),” “Love Changes,” “Somewhere Over The Rainbow / Nine Million Bicycles (Medley),” “Crazy” and “Play That Funky Music.” A medley is a performance construction that joins portions of multiple songs into one continuous piece; here, “Somewhere Over The Rainbow” and “Nine Million Bicycles” are listed together in that form. The presence of an extended program, covers and a medley reinforces that this is designed as a broad concert document rather than a narrowly archival bonus disc.
‘3121 Las Vegas Live’ tracklist
Disc 1
- 3121
- Girls & Boys
- Satisfied
- Down By The Riverside
- Purple Rain
- Lolita
- Black Sweat
- Kiss
- Shhh
- Musicology / Prince And The Band
- Pass The Peas
Disc 2
- I Never Loved A Man (The Way I Love You)
- Love Changes
- Somewhere Over The Rainbow / Nine Million Bicycles (Medley)
- If I Was Your Girlfriend
- Pink Cashmere
- Cream
- U Got the Look
- Crazy
- Get On the Boat
- Play That Funky Music
Three release dates and what each one means
The rollout uses three dates, and each corresponds to a different piece of the project:
- November 11: Tickets for the limited theatrical release of Prince: 3121 Las Vegas Concert are scheduled to go on sale.
- November 27: 3121 Las Vegas Live is scheduled for Record Store Day Black Friday on 3LP crystal blue vinyl and 2CD.
- December 3: The Las Vegas concert film is scheduled to begin its limited theatrical engagement in the U.S. and Canada.
- December 11: 3121 Expanded Edition is scheduled to arrive digitally and in 3LP + Blu-ray and 2CD + Blu-ray editions.
Record Store Day Black Friday is the retail event attached here to the live album’s November 27 release. It should not be confused with the later expanded-album date, or with the theatrical run. The live album, the theatrical concert film and the expanded edition are related releases, but they are not the same product and do not share one universal release day.
The physical formats likewise serve different priorities. The 3LP and 2CD editions of 3121 Expanded Edition are paired with the Las Vegas concert footage on Blu-ray. The separately announced live album comes in triple-LP crystal blue vinyl or 2CD. Vinyl is a physical audio format pressed onto records; Blu-ray is an optical disc format commonly used for high-definition video. The announced configurations therefore divide the project between an expanded-era package with video and a dedicated audio document of the Las Vegas performance.
Why this campaign has a broader appeal than a standard reissue
The announced material is notable because it gives several paths into the same period of Prince’s work. Someone focused on the studio album can begin with the original 12-track sequence. A listener looking for archival additions can move to the raw recordings and acoustic versions. Fans interested in Prince’s bandleading and set construction can turn to the Las Vegas performance, which stretches across more than two hours of music and reaches well beyond 3121.
The theatrical presentation adds another option: a concert film experienced in a cinema rather than only at home on the included Blu-ray. Its U.S. and Canada run is limited, so interested viewers will need to follow the November 11 ticket date and local theater availability. Nothing in the announcement establishes broader territories or a permanent theatrical schedule, and nothing should be inferred beyond the stated limited engagement.
For readers tracking releases across entertainment, this sits alongside other major film and culture news, including Darren Aronofsky’s upcoming Camerimage director award. Prince’s release campaign, however, is distinctive in the way it ties a chart-topping studio album to archival studio recordings and a full-length performance document from the same general era.
Most importantly, the announcement preserves the boundaries between what is known and what remains to be clarified. The 10 extra tracks are confirmed for the expanded digital edition; the physical 3121 packages are confirmed to include a Blu-ray of 2007 Las Vegas footage; and the live album has its own vinyl and CD editions. Final listings will be the place to confirm exact physical-audio contents, but the central shape of the project is already clear: 3121 is being revisited as both a No. 1 album and the foundation for a substantial live-era presentation.
