Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3536: Prince Explains His Name Change in 1999 Interview - Body Language (VIDEO, PHOTOS)

The video above is an excerpt from a 1999 interview of Prince by Larry King. Prince (whose birth name was Prince Rogers Nelson) changed his name legal name in 1992 to a that of a symbol:

Beginning at 0:27, their dialog continues ...

Larry King: "Why then did you choose, 'The Artist Formerly Known As'?"

Prince: "Well, I didn't choose that, that was chosen."

King: "They chose it for you?"

Prince: "Yeah, pretty much."






What follows is a partial nonverbal analysis.

From 0:31.8 to 0:35, Prince partially covers his mouth with a (mostly) closed fist. Initially he also displays a partially suppressed mouth smile.









At first he also looks briefly up and to his left (very common but not universal when right hand dominant people are recalling something that is primarily visual).

We then see a full sincere smile (Duchenne Smile) with the additional component of blushing.












Taken in toto, this nonverbal cluster is highly consistent with embarrassment and a hesitancy for Prince to fully disclose all he is thinking-feeling.


Thank you Prince. Rest in Peace.


See also:

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3535: Prince, Sexual Signals and Body Language

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3473: Adele's Tongue and Ellen DeGeneres

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3514: Casting Rey - The Force Awakens Bonus Features - Daisy Ridley's Body Language

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3501: Salah Abdeslam of Paris Attacks is Captured - Body Language Traits Shared by Terrorists

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3464: Of Katie Holmes, Super Bowls, Smiles and Anxiety

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3441: Michigan Governor Rick Snyder Interview regarding Flint's Water Crisis - Is He Being Honest and Sincere? 

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3377: Holly Holm's post-fight interview after defeating Ronda Rousey

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 3417: Freshman Debate Mistakes and Faux Pas Abound

_____________________________________________________________________________________

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 2657: Keanu Reeves's, "47 Ronin" and a Hesitancy to Discuss - a Key Body Language Tell (VIDEO, PHOTOS)

A fantastic body language tell is displayed in the above video. Keanu Reeves is being interviewed regarding his just released movie, "47 Ronin" by Savannah Guthrie (Today).

Beginning at 2:20, Guthrie asks the accomplished actor, "Well, it's really exciting to watch and I, I was thinking about you because honestly we don't see you that often. You seem to be very choosy about your projects. Is that on purpose? Is that by design?"

Reeves answers, "Yeah. Yeah ...I mean, you know you want to find the right project. You wanna [deep exhale] ummm, yeah, I can just say that. You know."

During the 2:27 - 2:29 segment as Guthrie says, "... about your projects. Is that on purpose? ..." (And probably repeated however camera angle precludes the view), Reeves rubs both of his thighs with each hand forward to and then including the knees. This self-massage, rubbing of the thighs is an example what is known as a Manipulator, Adaptor or Pacifier (aka MAP) and is consistent with a heightened anxiety state. However, when this progresses forward (and downward) to include the knees, there is a particularly hesitancy in full disclosure of the matter being discussed. This evasiveness is clearly expressed verbally in this example of Reeves - however in other scenarios it is not so obvious. This very specific nonverbal tell is particularly helpful during vetting, voir dire, negotiations, depositions, interrogations and interview settings.

This is yet another example of a skilled actor being very easy to read with respect to his body language. And he acts for a living. What other significant tells did you see in this video?

See also:

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 2567: Keanu Reeves, "Man of Tai Chi" and a Beta Posture

Body Language Confidence Secret # 33: Keanu Reeves - Covering the Mouth While Smiling

Nonverbal Communication Secret # 1083:  Brewer's MAPs Flag Foreboding

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 2642: Tom Hanks Can't Act Away a Fib - His Body Language Tells a Little Lie

Negotiation Secret # 91: MAPs by Proxy

Nonverbal Communication Analysis # 1869:  One Body Language Signal a President Should Never Display

Nonverbal Communication Analysis No. 2522: Jake Gyllenhaal and Jimmy Kimmel, Part II,  Body Language and Anxiety in Hollywood

________________________________________________________________________________