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1991–1996: Name change, Diamonds and Pearls and The Gold Experience

1991 began with a performance in Rock in Rio II and marked the debut of Prince's new band, the New Power Generation. With guitarist Miko Weaver and long-time keyboardist Doctor Fink gone, Prince added bass player Sonny T., Tommy Barbarella on keyboards, and a brass section known as the Hornheads to go along with Levi Seacer (taking over on guitar), Rosie Gaines, Michael Bland, and the Game Boyz. With significant input from his band members, Diamonds and Pearls was released on October 1, 1991. Reaching No. 3 on the Billboard 200 album chart, Diamonds and Pearls saw four hit singles released in the United States. " Gett Off " peaked at No. 21 on the Hot 100 and No. 6 on the R&B charts, followed by " Cream ", which gave Prince his fifth US No. 1 single. The title track " Diamonds and Pearls " became the album's third single, reaching No. 3 on the Hot 100 and the top spot on the R&B charts. " Money Don't Matter 2 Night " peaked at No. 23 and No. 14 on the Hot 100 and R&B charts respectively.

In 1992, Prince released his 14th studio album, the second to feature the New Power Generation. It bore only an unpronounceable symbol on the cover (later copyrighted as "Love Symbol #2") as its title; the symbol was explained as being a combination of the symbols for male (♂) and female (♀). Warner Bros. wanted " 7 " to be the first single, but Prince fought to release " My Name Is Prince ", as he believed its "hip-hoppery" would appeal to the audience that had purchased his previous album. Prince got his way, but "My Name Is Prince" reached No. 36 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 23 on the R&B chart. The follow-up single, " Sexy MF ", charted at No. 66 on the Hot 100 and No. 76 on the R&B chart. "7" reached No. 7. The album, later referred to as Love Symbol, peaked at No. 5 on the Billboard 200 and went on to sell 2.8 million copies worldwide.

After failed attempts in 1990 and 1991, Warner Bros. released a greatest hits compilation with the three-disc The Hits/The B-Sides in 1993. The first two discs were also sold separately as The Hits 1 and The Hits 2. The collection features the majority of Prince's hit singles (with the exception of "Batdance" and other songs that appeared on the Batman soundtrack), and several previously hard-to-find recordings, including B-sides from across Prince's career and previously unreleased tracks such as the Revolution-recorded "Power Fantastic" and a live recording of " Nothing Compares 2 U " with Rosie Gaines. Two new songs, " Pink Cashmere " and " Peach ", were chosen as promotional singles.

In 1993, in rebellion against Warner Bros., which refused to release Prince's enormous backlog of music at a steady pace, Prince formally adopted the "Love Symbol" as his stage name. To use the symbol in print media, Warner Bros. organized a mass mailing of floppy disks with a custom font. At this time, Prince was often referred to as "the Artist Formerly Known as Prince" or "the Artist".

In 1994, Prince began to release albums in quick succession as a means of releasing himself from his contractual obligations to Warner Bros. He also began appearing with the word "slave" written on his face. He believed Warner Bros. was intent on limiting his artistic freedom by insisting he release albums more sporadically. He also blamed Warner Bros. for the poor commercial performance of Love Symbol, claiming they had marketed it insufficiently. It was out of these developments that the aborted The Black Album was officially released, seven years after its initial recording. The "new" release was already in wide circulation as a bootleg. Warner Bros. then succumbed to Prince's wishes to release an album of new material, Come.

Prince pushed to have his next album, The Gold Experience, released simultaneously with Love Symbol– era material. Warner Bros. allowed the single " The Most Beautiful Girl in the World " to be released via a small, independent distributor, Bellmark Records, in February 1994. The release reached No. 3 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and No. 1 in many other countries, but it did not prove to be a model for subsequent releases. Warner Bros. still resisted releasing The Gold Experience, fearing poor sales and citing " market saturation " as a defense. When released in September 1995, The Gold Experience reached the top 10 of the Billboard 200. The album was not in print for a long period due to a plagiarism case relating to "The Most Beautiful Girl in the World", but the album was released on streaming with Prince’s catalog in 2018, and reissued on CD and vinyl in 2022.

Chaos and Disorder, released in 1996, was Prince's final album of new material for Warner Bros., as well as one of his least commercially successful releases.