Songfacts®:

• "Live 4 Love" is told from the perspective of a young man who gets kicked out of his home and joins the Air Force, becoming a pilot. He's sent to fight in a war, where he's sent on a bombing run. During the mission, doubts creep in: If he drops his bombs, people will die, and the angel on his shoulder tells him to "live for love." He ends up getting hit but completing the mission - he really had no choice.
  
  Prince wrote the first version of the song in 1990 as American forces were preparing for war in Iraq. At this point the song was critical of the impending war, but after the US started air strikes in January 1991 as part of Operation Desert Storm, he changed the lyrics to be more sympathetic towards the soldiers who were doing their duty. The song explores the moral quandary inherent in war: You can't live for love and also kill.
• The song is part of the Diamonds And Pearls album, where Prince introduced his New Power Generation band. The band included a rapper, Tony M., who is featured on the track and is credited as a co-writer. Prince resisted rap music as long as he could - adding a rapper to his band was a big step for him.
• Prince borrowed the robotic countdown intro from one of his earlier unreleased songs, "We Got the Power" (1988).
• The full title of the song, as listed in the album liner notes, is "Live 4 Love (Last Words from the Cockpit)." It's the last track on the album.
• Prince released a music video for this song in 1992 made up of footage compiled from the Diamonds And Pearls tour and scenes of war footage.