Brooklyn's Living Legend Prince Wells grew up and attended school in Brooklyn. His family (Mattox and Wells) are counted among the Founding Families of Brooklyn, Illinois. The matriarch of his family, Laura Mattox, migrated from Greenwood, Mississippi soon after slavery. Her husband, Charlie Wells passed before the family's migration. Upon arriving in Brooklyn, which was a beacon of hope for those who chose to be the architects of their own destinies seeking prosperity, Laura Mattox purchased several parcels along 5th and Jefferson St. As families of the Mattox and Wells clan arrived, homes were built on these parcels. Several of her descendants remain residents of our hometown today.

Prince picked up the trumpet in 5th grade. Under the tutelage of George Hudson, he mastered his instrument. When George Husdon retired from teaching music and leading the school band, he passed the baton to Prince. When George Hudson transitioned from this earth, his wife Ruby, bestowed her husband's trumpet to Prince. He had proven himself worthy to receive it. As a young boy, He recalls standing outside the Swank House with Ephraim Burrell listening to Albert King and Jerry Walker and the Soulful 5 play inside.

Among the the many achievements and awards, Prince has as a composer and trumpeter, he has been the Director of Music Business, and Black Studies programs at SIU-E, Chair of the Music Department, Faculty Senate Welfare Counsil and President of SIU-E's Black Faculty. He is a certified instructor of George Russell's Lyndian Chromatic Concept of Tonal Organization. In 2022, Prince was honored by Jazz St Louis with the Inagural Jazz Ambassador Award.