Free Press staff, wire reports

MINNEAPOLIS

Fans in the Richmond area and around the world are listening to their favorite Prince songs, watching his iconic movie “Purple Rain” and partying like it’s 1999 in memory and honor of the pop icon who died Thursday, April 21, 2016, in his hometown of Minneapolis.

The 57-year-old was found unresponsive in an elevator at his Paisley Park Studios compound, which included his home, in the Minneapolis suburb of Chanhassen, according to the Carver County Sheriff’s Office.

Prince was known for his unique songwriting, energetic stage performances and break-the-mold creative talents. He electrified fans around the world with his hits that included “Purple Rain,” “Let’s Go Crazy,” “Little Red Corvette” and “When Doves Cry.”

He drew upon musicians ranging from James Brown to Jimi Hendrix to the Beatles while creating a gender- and genre-defying blend of rock, funk and soul.

Last Friday, Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton directed the Minnesota Department of Transportation to continue the purple lighting of the Interstate 35W Bridge in Minneapolis through last weekend.

“Prince and his music defined an era,” Gov. Dayton said last Friday. “His tremendous talent was matched only by his generosity and commitment to improving his community. Minnesotans and our nation mourn the loss of a great artist today, one who has left an unforgettable mark on music history, and whose contributions to the betterment of our state will be remembered for years to come.”

In Richmond, local radio personalities Kelli Lemon and DJ Lonnie B hosted a free tribute to Prince on Tuesday night at the Hippodrome Theater then scheduled another 8 to 11 p.m. Thursday, April 28, next door at The Speakeasy, 526 N. 2nd St., in Jackson Ward.

“It’s for people who respect his genius and want to get together and have a good time while watching some of Prince’s videos on one of our five screens,” said Hippodrome owner Ron Stallings. “We encourage everyone to wear purple.”

Several area theaters are hosting showings of “Purple Rain,” including an 8:05 p.m. show Thursday, April 28, at the Goochland Drive-In, 4344 Old Fredericksburg Road, and a midnight show, Saturday, April 30, at the Byrd Theatre, 2908 W. Cary St., in the West End.

Born in Minneapolis as Prince Rogers Nelson on June 7, 1958, Prince is said to have written his first song at age 7. As well as singing and writing, he played multiple instruments, including guitar, keyboards and drums.

In a 1998 interview with Reuters, Prince said he ignored critics and focused on a quest for great music. “I just do what I feel I’m supposed to do,” he said.

Prince was a beloved icon in his home state. As news of his death spread last week around the nation and the world like wildfire, distraught devotees gathered outside the Paisley Park compound in mourning, leaving purple flowers and balloons.

“His music made the hair on your arms stand up,” said Kristina Dudziak, 44. “It felt like he was making love to his guitar. ... It’s a sad day,” she added, starting to sob.

Prince’s publicist, Anna Meacham, said in a statement that his body was cremated, and his final resting place will remain private.

Meanwhile, his family and friends attended a private ceremony last Saturday at the studio complex, she said.

Among those seen entering the Paisley Park Studios complex were his sister, Tyka Nelson, musician and former collaborator Sheila E., his former bass player Larry Graham and model Damaris Lewis.

“Prince was celebrated by a small group of his most beloved: Family, friends and his musicians, in a private, beautiful ceremony to say a loving goodbye,” Ms. Meacham stated.

Participants in the ceremony handed some fans outside gift boxes that contained items such as Prince-themed apparel and a compact disc of music.

Prince was on a U.S. tour as recently as two weeks ago.

On Friday, April 15, he was briefly hospitalized with what his representative told celebrity news website TMZ was the flu after his plane made an emergency landing in Moline, Ill.

The representative said Prince had performed in Atlanta despite not feeling well and felt worse after boarding the plane back to Minnesota, the website reported.

But during the weekend of April 15, the musician hosted a party at Paisley Park. One attendee, 26-year-old Jamie Reimann, said Prince appeared after midnight Saturday, April 16, and played two songs on a piano in what would turn out to be his final performance.

“It was just five or six minutes. He introduced his doctor ... and asked fans to give him a round of applause and said the doctor was helping him feel better,” the fan said.

“He (Prince) looked fine, but his voice sounded like he might have had a cold or something. He didn’t look sickly.”

But just days later, the Carver County Sheriff’s Office received a 911 call at 9:43 a.m. Thursday, April 21, made from the complex. In the transcript, which was released last week by the sheriff’s office, an unidentified male initially reported that someone was dead at the home. The victim later was identified during the call as Prince.

He was pronounced dead at 10:07 a.m.

Police found no signs of suicide or obvious trauma in his death, authorities said at a news conference last Friday, but said it could take weeks before autopsy results reveal the performer’s cause of death.

Prince’s death shocked his millions of fans around the world and prompted glowing tributes from fellow musicians and public figures, including President Obama.

“Few artists have influenced the sound and trajectory of popular music more distinctly, or touched quite so many people with their talent,” President Obama said in a statement. “ ‘A strong spirit transcends rules,’ Prince once said — and nobody’s spirit was stronger, bolder or more creative.”

Sheila E., the singer and percussionist who worked closely with Prince in the 1980s and credited him with fueling the start of her career, wrote on Twitter: “My heart is broken. There are no words. I love you!”

“Prince the doves really are crying now. Listening to your music. Remembering you. #RIPPrince,” tweeted Oprah Winfrey.

Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger hailed his fellow singer and musician as “revolutionary” and one of the most unique and exciting artists of the last 30 years. Prince was an original lyricist and a “startling” guitar player, he added.

“His talent was limitless,” Mr. Jagger wrote on Twitter.

In Minneapolis, thousands of his fans hit the streets and held an all-night block party. Fans hugged, cried, danced, laughed and sang along with local bands playing covers of Prince’s music. The crowd sang Prince’s signature “Purple Rain” outside the First Avenue music club. The venue was featured in scenes of the movie and Prince has performed there many times.

Entertainers around the world played songs to honor the icon, including many of those who performed at last weekend’s New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. Comedian Dave Chapelle dedicated his four-hour set at a San Francisco venue last Friday to Prince.

NBC’s “Saturday Night Live” aired a special tribute show, “Goodnight Sweet Prince.” It included a video of Prince’s impromptu performance at an after-party following the show’s 40th anniversary special last year, where Prince sang “Let’s Go Crazy” on a small stage alongside Jimmy Fallon, fellow SNL vets Chris Rock, Maya Rudolph, Martin Short and other celebrities. Richmond’s own D’Angelo paid a touching tribute to Prince on Tuesday’s “The Tonight Show” with a performance of “Sometimes It Snows in April.”

Prince first found fame in the late 1970s. Often making a statement with bold fashion choices, the diminutive, 5-feet 2 star sometimes appeared on stage sporting ruffled shirts and tight pants or elaborate costumes.

“He was a legend,” said another fan, Karen Menardy, 45, weeping outside New York City’s storied Apollo Theater, where some passers-by danced in the street as Prince songs played on a portable speaker.

Calling Prince a “once-in-a-lifetime artist,” music TV channel MTV changed its logo to purple in his honor, and the search engine Google changed the color of its name to purple, with a background of falling purple rain.

Prince was regarded as a perfectionist who, from 1993 to 2000, changed his name to a symbol in an apparent protest against his record label at the time. For a while, he was dubbed “The Artist Formerly Known as Prince.”

An intensely private person, Prince sold more than 100 million records. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2004, and his most recent album, “HITnRUN: Phase Two” was released in December 2015.

Prince became a Jehovah’s Witness about 15 years ago, and was a strict vegan. In 2009, he told PBS television about being born an epileptic and suffering seizures as a child.

He also said he was teased in school, and that “early in my career I tried to compensate by being as flashy as I could and as noisy as I cowuld.”

Prince won an Academy Award for best original song score for “Purple Rain,” the movie in which he also starred.

His private life was marked by a string of romances linking him with the likes of Madonna and actresses Kim Basinger and Carmen Electra. He was married twice — to his backup singer, Mayte Garcia, in 1996, and then to Manuela Testolini in 2001. Both marriages ended in divorce, and a son he had with Ms. Garcia died a week after birth in October 1996.

“I loved him then, I love him now and will love him eternally,” Ms. Garcia told People magazine. “He’s with our son now.”