Best Prince Stories Remembered 5 Years After His Death

MINNEAPOLIS — Certain celebrity deaths are so shocking that many Americans will forever remember where they were when they heard the news. The sudden death of the musical artist Prince was as shocking as the deaths of Michael Jackson, Kobe Bryant and Princess Diana.

The “Purple Rain” singer and pioneer of the “Minneapolis sound” music genre died of an accidental fentanyl overdose at age 57 on April 21, 2016, now five years ago.

A proud Minnesotan, Prince was regarded by fans across the globe as a legend gone too soon. His uniqueness will be forever remembered with some of the smoothest stories ever told.

America had its eyes glued on the music superstar on Feb. 4, 2007, as he performed the halftime show during Super Bowl XLI. The performance has gone down in Super Bowl halftime show lore not only for the music but also the weather conditions he had to overcome.

To this day, that Super Bowl, which pitted the Indianapolis Colts against the Chicago Bears, is the only one in the history of the game to be played amid a rainstorm.

As Prince would have it, it was indeed a “Purple Rain” storm. Prince averted disaster with four electric guitars and an electric stage during a downpour at Dolphin Stadium in Miami.

When told that morning that it was expected to rain during game time and asked if he was OK with that, Prince asked one of the show’s producers if he “could make it rain harder,” according to an NFL feature on the memorable Super Bowl halftime show.

Prince turned the bad weather “into his advantage,” a New York Times music critic said.

A few days earlier, Prince surprised Super Bowl media members by calling a news conference.

“Contrary to rumor, I’m going to take some questions,” he said to reporters while at the mic.

He didn’t. When the first question was asked, Prince and his band immediately broke out into a 12-minute impromptu concert.

An avid Minnesota Vikings football fan himself, Prince stayed loyal to his home Twin Cities area. He opened Paisley Park, his home and recording studio, in Chanhassen, Minnesota. The site reopened for a day on Wednesday, the fifth anniversary of Prince’s death, to some fans for an all-day remembrance.

Prince stories have also been immortalized in pop culture, including one skit on “Chappelle’s Show” in which Charlie Murphy hilariously recounted an alleged basketball game when Prince and his “Revolution” bandmates dominated Murphy and his friends on the court while wearing the outlandish clothing Prince was known for during his concerts.

“Game. Blouses” — a line from show host Dave Chappelle portraying Prince in the episode — has stood the test of time as a “mic drop” moment.

While the exact details of the skit featuring Chappelle and Murphy are likely not true, at least one of the aspects of it appears to be.

Prince dressed up even when dressing down, Ian Boxill, Paisley Park’s former engineer, told GQ in 2016.

“Even when he was dressed down, he’d dress like Prince,” Boxill told the fashion magazine. “Three-inch-tall flip-flops, or these heels with lights — they’d light up when he walked."

Morris Hayes, a former keyboard player and Prince’s longest-serving band member, concurred. He remembered the iconic musician’s generosity, referencing an act of kindness at a Caribou Coffee store in Minnesota.

“He’d go over there, and he didn’t have any pockets,” Hayes told GQ. “He didn’t have a wallet or any credit cards. He just had cash he’d carry in his hand — like a $100 bill. And whoever took his order, they’d have a good day, ’cause he’d buy his coffee drink and then just leave the whole hundred.”

“He doesn’t wait for any change because he doesn’t have anywhere to put it.”