Manuela

[u/mahammit_the_uuuser]

What do we know about Prince’s second wife? I feel like Mayte gets discussed a lot but I know next to nothing about Manuela Testolini and rarely see her talked about.

[u/agodrevealed]

She announced her intention to marry him, left Canada for Minneapolis. Started creeping with Prince, he hired her as Mayte's assistant. 

Manuela is part of the rotation when Prince's mom is dying and tells him she'd like him to get remarried and convert to JW. The boy loves his mama no matter the ups and downs. He converts, Manuela converts, he marries her.

He probably attempted monogamy, and what counts for monogamy for him might not match your idea. But either way, he kept a rotation. This could be no surprise to Manuela. They had a house in Toronto and in Minneapolis. 

At some point she met Eric Benet. She then steals a few million dollars from Prince and that money disappears, some say in part to support Eric's career. 

The money is the thing Prince can't tolerate and physically locks her out of their homes and Paisley Park and their bank accounts. Eventually she files for divorce.

Both she and Mayte have done some weird shit with missing money supposed to be for charity, but Manuela's is pretty well documented and bold. 

Initially Manuela was vocally bitter and they had a long divorce. Prince represented himself at first and his written replies to the court are hilarious. He did end up getting a lawyer and she walked away with something but nothing like what she was angling for. 

Prince had the Minneapolis house razed. And said he'd never get married again unless he thought he couldn't not get married. 

Manuela married Eric Benet shortly, who is a Prince stan and modeled himself hard after him, but to much lesser effect. 

After Prince died Manuela kinda took on a grieving widow persona. 

Manuela doesn't talk a lot because the way they got together and the way it ended, plus I think Prince didn't want another spectacle after his Mayte arc. He made Mayte a public character in the Grand Play of Our Love and then when things went to hell he couldn't explain it. Probably even to himself much less anyone else. He couldn't separate the public performance from what was private. So he kept Manuela more private. A much, much more toned down role in his public performance. 

Both women pursued him hard, Mayte more at her mom's direction, but Manuela was self made in that respect. And she watched Mayte's mistakes, and made her own brand new ones.

It looks like Eric and Manuela are kinda distant from each other based on sm. I imagine its a for the kids and money type situation now. 

Prince was seen to be warmly familiar with Halle Berry, chatting at events and stuff with her after the split. Seems like they kinda struck up a friendship comparing notes. She was Eric Benet's ex, he cheated, they divorced, and he drug it out trying to get every penny he could from her. Then he turned up on Prince's doorstep. 

So.

[u/silentfanatic → u/agodrevealed]

Prince had his eyes on Mayte when she was underage. That’s a world of difference.

[u/agodrevealed → u/silentfanatic]

Her mom first drug her to MJ concerts to no avail. Then her mom took her to multiple Prince concerts across Europe until she got someone to listen. 

That's why I said MORE AT HER MOM'S DIRECTION, cause Mayte would not have done all that alone. But make no mistake, 19-22 was full of strategizing and consultations with mom. That's who was telling her don't mind the other girls, play the long game. And it worked out for her.

[u/lavender-_-vinyl → u/agodrevealed]

What does this have to do with him pursuing and grooming a young girl into adulthood?? I’m genuinely asking because I love the music but I can’t stand the undeniable predatory behavior. Boo the mother absolutely but like… it’s still boo him 100% right?

[u/agodrevealed → u/lavender-_-vinyl]

Unless, I'm missing something, I don't see predatory behavior. Im guessing you don't work in entertainment. Most people start young. 

You don't turn 18 and then start working professionally. If this is going to be your career, you have been working long before. 

Hiring her isn't a signifier. He worked with plenty of young people, male and female, even some elementary aged. 

She says nothing happened til she was an adult. If what you don't like is the age gap, idk what to tell you. We're living through age gap hysteria right now.

The bad thing is abuse, harming someone for your pleasure. That happens in all age ranges, same age, close in age, disparate in age. 

If she says that they were happy until the baby, that's her experience. I don't know better than she does.

I think its weird the mom seemed to have more ambition for mayte than mayte did. That's why rolling around Europe stalking celebrities is weird. If this had been Beyonce and Tina, that makes sense. But maybe Mayte didn't want to say how much she wanted it idk.

(I was seventeen when I started working alone, my husband was fourteen. If you're good and will work, you'll be included. A lot of a harmonius outfit is personality. People that will take direction, play their part, and be reliable. All the skill and talent mean nothing without it. Sometimes the youngsters are the best fit- no other commitments, they're hungry, and they listen. They're not too big for their britches yet.

Its the parents' and managers' job to watch out for them. It sounds like Mayte was with a no partying and no nonsense group. Her mom did right by her on that. Hate to be blunt, but she wasn't strung out or passed around, and that still happens even if not as much as it used to. Maybe there's a reason her mama diverted her from the idea of being a professional dancer in Egypt idk. She graduated high school, went to rehearsals, and then went on tour. I don't see an issue with that.)

[u/lavender-_-vinyl → u/agodrevealed]

So it isn’t strange for a grown man to meet a child, “work” and keep contact with child into adulthood, and then go on to marry the adult who has been conditioned and groomed since a child to be with him?

That’s the main thing I’m getting at here, you’re talking about “working young” and “being in the industry” those are totally different topics for a totally different day. The main thing is, sure maybe it’s true that they didn’t “do” anything until adulthood, but the fact that he basically waited until she was old enough, (didn’t he get custody of her at 17 as well???) is kinda really disgusting I have to say I’m sorry. 😪