Tributes have poured in for the 57-year-old, who died in as-yet-unexplained circumstances at his home-work compound in Minnesota. One report said the performer had been treated for a drug overdose the previous week.
Image: Reuters/L. Nicholson
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Prince: The pop legend's life in pictures
Pop genius Prince's music influenced an entire generation. His fashion sense also had a marked impact. The pop star legend, who died in 2016 at the age of 57, would have turned 65 on June 7, 2023.
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Birth of a star
Prince Rogers Nelson was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on June 7, 1958. He had a strong interest in music early on and is said to have written his first song at the age of seven. At 20, he released his debut album, "For You." His 1979 album "Prince" went platinum due to the success of the singles "Why You Wanna Treat Me So Bad?" and "I Wanna Be Your Lover."
Image: PA/picture alliance
'Purple Rain'
His next three records, "Dirty Mind" (1980), "Controversy" (1981), and "1999" (1982), established Prince's trademark of blatantly sexual lyrics and infusion of funk, dance, and rock. In 1984, he named his backup band "The Revolution" and released "Purple Rain," which served as the soundtrack to his film debut. According to Prince, the color purple symbolized the end of the world.
Image: Ross Marino/RKA/MPI/Captital Pictures/picture alliance
Musical genius
Prince played a total of 15 musical instruments, among them guitar, drums, keyboard, electric bass and synthesizer. He often played all the instruments himself in studio productions. His global hits included songs like "Kiss" and "When Doves Cry," as well as "Purple Rain" from 1984.
Image: David Brewster/Star Tribune/Zuma/picture alliance
Debut as a director brought mixed rewards
In 1986, Prince directed and starred as a gigolo named Christopher Tracy in the musical, "Under the Cherry Moon." Despite the film's poor performance and many Golden Raspberry Awards — a parody honor highlighting the worst of cinema — the soundtrack album was critically praised as Prince's finest record yet. "Kiss" hit number one on the Billboard chart and "Mountains" reached number 23.
Image: Keystone/dpa/picture-alliance
One artist, many names
After releasing the albums "Around the World in a Day" (1985) and "Parade" (1986), The Revolution disbanded and Prince released several solo albums before debuting The New Power Generation band in 1991. He changed his stage name in 1993 to an unpronounceable symbol, which became known as the "Love Symbol." In 2000, he began referring to himself as "Prince" again.
Image: Ethan Miller/Getty Images
Love-life that both turbulent and tragic
Prince was romantically linked to many celebrities, including Kim Basinger, Madonna and Carmen Electra. In 1996, he married his 22-year-old backup singer Mayte Garcia (pictured). They had a son named Boy Gregory, who died shortly after birth from Pfeiffer syndrome — a genetic bone disorder. Two years after their divorce, Prince married Manuela Testolini. She filed for divorce in May 2006.
Image: Captital Pictures/picture alliance
Never-ending success
While his guitar may have gently wept, Prince did manage to sell over 100 million records worldwide, making him one of the best-selling artists of all time. He won seven Grammy Awards, a Golden Globe, and an Academy Award. In 2004, Prince was inducted into the Rock 'n Roll Hall of Fame. "Rolling Stone" magazine ranked Prince at number 27 on its list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.
Image: Vince Bucci/Getty Images
Prince's final years
In this image, Prince is attending a match at the French Open involving Rafael Nadal in 2014. That year, Prince released a new single, "The Breakdown." He also announced that he had re-signed with his former label, Warner Bros., after an 18-year split. His penultimate album "Hit n Run Phase One" was available on the music streaming service Tidal before being released as a CD in September 2015.
Image: KENZO TRIBOUILLARD/AFP/Getty Images
A pop icon dies
His final album, "HIT 'n Run Phase Two," was first released exclusively on the Tidal streaming service on December 11, 2015. Prince was in the middle of what would be his last tour — the Piano & A Microphone Tour — when he had to postpone two performances stating that he was "battling flu." Prince was found dead at his Paisley Park complex in Minnesota on the morning of April 21, 2016.
Image: Nick Laham/Getty Images
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News of Prince's death on Thursday prompted a succession of tributes from fellow musicians and fans across the world.
The 57-year-old was found dead at his Paisley Park compound on the outskirts of Minneapolis, where he lived and worked. Official details of the cause of death have yet to be released, with one report that the artist had been treated for a drug overdose days earlier.
US President Barack Obama lamented the loss of a "creative icon," saying he and his wife, Michelle, joined fans around the world in mourning.
"Few artists have influenced the sound and trajectory of popular music more distinctly, or touched quite so many people with their talent," Obama said.
"Prince's talent was limitless," Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger said. "He was one of the most unique and talented artists of the last 30 years."
Prince's fellow 1980s icon Madonna, who recorded with the artist and was said to have briefly dated him, said she was "devastated."
She wrote on Instagram: "He changed the world!! A true visionary. What a loss."
Other notable musicians, singers and celebrities took to Twitter to mourn.
Filmmaker Spike Lee mustered a crowd of some 1,000 people for an impromptu street party in honor of Prince.
Lee himself also tweeted.
Meanwhile, thousands of fans gathered around a club in Minneapolis used in the film "Purple Rain." Prince was born in Minneapolis and lived there most of his life.
"People are coming from all over the world, so this is a whole weekend of celebration," said guitarist Cleo Patricx, according to AFP news agency.
'Complicated and diligent'
One of the closest tributes came from Albert Magnoli, the filmmaker who worked with Prince on "Purple Rain". "We shared tremendous times together during and after the making of 'Purple Rain.' I know his fans are devastated," Magnoli said. "I know his music meant so very much to so many people. He was a good man, complicated and diligent, and like men of his caliber, he always demanded from himself and others the very best."
Fans took to Twitter and other forms of social media to share their shock at the 57-year-old's sudden death. And, in a nod to the artist's signature color, NASA tweeted a picture of a purple nebula.
The Carver County Sheriff's Office released a transcript of a 911 call from an unidentified man at the property where Prince was found. The caller was asked if he was with the patient. "Yes - it's Prince," the man replied. A female voice was later heard giving details of the address.
The musician was found unresponsive in an elevator. Attempts were made to resuscitate him, but these failed, and the artist was pronounced dead at 10:07 a.m. (1507 UTC). An investigation has been launched into the cause of death.
TMZ: 'Save shot' administered
The entertainment website TMZ, which broke the news, reported that the musician had been treated for a drug overdose the week before his death.
Prince was said to have been taken to a hospital after his private jet made an unscheduled landing in Moline, Illinois, last Friday. It came after he had performed a concert in Atlanta, and the artist had reportedly been suffering from flu-like symptoms.
"Multiple sources in Moline tell us Prince was rushed to a hospital and doctors gave him a 'save shot' ... typically administered to counteract the effects of an opiate," TMZ reported.
Although his music was less high-profile in recent years than in the 1980s, Prince - whose most famous hits include "1999", "Purple Rain" and "Little Red Corvette" - had been touring and recording right up until his death and released four albums in the past 18 months.
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