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Prince is dead at age of 57

Music icon Prince has died at the age of 57 at his home in suburban Minneapolis, his publici...
Newstalk
Newstalk

18.07 21 Apr 2016


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Prince is dead at age of 57

Prince is dead at age of 57

Newstalk
Newstalk

18.07 21 Apr 2016


Share this article


Music icon Prince has died at the age of 57 at his home in suburban Minneapolis, his publicist has confirmed.

His publicist, Yvette Noel-Schure said that the rock legend was found dead at his home on Thursday in Chanhassen.

"It is with profound sadness that I am confirming that the legendary, iconic performer, Prince Rogers Nelson, has died," she said in a statement.

"There are no further details as to the cause of death at this time."

It comes days after he suffered a medical emergency that forced his private jet to make an emergency landing in Illinois.

Today FM presenter and Undertones singer Paul McLoone says that there was nothing Prince couldn't do as a songwriter, performer and pop influence.

"He was just amazing," he said.

 

Prince was flying home from a show in Atlanta, Georgia, on 15 April when he was taken ill.

The singer was taken to a nearby hospital by ambulance, where he was treated and released hours later.

Barney Hoskyns, who's written about Prince, says he defined the music of the eighties.

"It's greater than really anything Michael Jackson or Madonna made, or any of the other stars of that decade," he said.

"He really was the most interesting and unusual superstar in that era."

 

 

Earlier today, police said they were investigating a death at the Paisley Park studios in Chanhassen, Minnesota.

They responded to a medical call and found the singer unresponsive in an elevator, Carver County Sheriff Jim Olson said. The death has sparked a massive outpouring of grief and tributes on social media.

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Prince, real name Prince Rogers Nelson, gained pop stardom in the 1980s with his albums 1999 and Purple Rain, which spent 24 weeks at the top of the chart.

The title track from 1999 includes one of the most widely quoted sayings in popular culture: "Tonight I'm gonna party like it's 1999."

He was known for his wide musical range, controversial lyrics, and eccentricity.

Widely regarded as one of the most naturally talented artists of all time, he was also a self-taught multi-instrumentalist, and produced and composed much of his music.

Prince was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2004, which hailed him as a musical and social trailblazer.

"He rewrote the rulebook, forging a synthesis of black funk and white rock that served as a blueprint for cutting-edge music in the Eighties," the Hall's dedication said.

"Prince made dance music that rocked and rock music that had a bristling, funky backbone. From the beginning, Prince and his music were androgynous, sly, sexy and provocative."


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