Prince's secret London gig heralds upcoming tour - video

MERCURIAL pop star Prince played two secret gigs in London last night to announce an upcoming tour later this year.

The artist played songs from his forthcoming album Plectrum Electrum, including two new numbers PretzelBodyLogic and Funk N Roll.

Maintaining his reputation for eccentricity, Prince's first performance of the evening took place in a tiny living room in East London, where the singer played in front of an open fireplace and reportedly drank cups of tea infused with Manuka honey between songs. The living room belonged to the English soul singer Lianna La Havas, who met Prince while he was touring the US last year.

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The 55-year-old artist then moved to a slightly larger venue in Camden, playing to an audience of 1,000 fans who had been following clues throughout the day on Twitter. The concert was significantly smaller than his last appearance in London in 2007, when he performed a 20-night residency at the O2 Arena.

According to The Guardian, full details about the upcoming tour remain scarce: "Prince is aiming to play 'iconic' venues for the rest of February, according to his publicist. 'We'll work our way up, if people like us, to bigger venues,' the singer said earlier in the day."

ITV reports that queues began to build outside the Electric Ballroom late Tuesday evening, but Prince didn't take to the stage until after midnight.

"The multi-instrumentalist, wearing a dark hooded sleeveless top, appeared on stage shortly after 12.30am backed by his new 3rd Eye Girl band and opened with a slowed-down version of I Could Never Take The Place Of Your Man," says ITV. He ended the gig by telling the small crowd: "You sound like ten thousand. We love each and every one of you."