2016 keeps doing its terrible duty of claiming the lives of iconic musicians like David Bowie or Lemmy (technically 2015) and today a big one has left us, as pop icon Prince has passed at the age of 57.
We know Prince isn’t necessarily the embodiment of Satan or heavy music but no one can deny the enormous influence and impact he had in the music industry during his career. Although starting more or less as a funk/R&B artist, he’s an amazingly soulful guitarist as well. Anyone that was alive in the ’80s were aware of him, including many rock and metal musicians who got influenced by The Purple One, and many have reacted to his passing on their social media.
RIP PRINCE..ONE OF THE SADDEST DAY’S TO SAY THE LEAST. HE WAS THE TRUE DEFINITION OF A REAL ARTIST. pic.twitter.com/wt3wA6NHe0
— ❌ Nikki Sixx ❌ (@NikkiSixx) April 21, 2016
RIP Prince. Rock n Roll Heaven sure is putting together an amazing supergroup.
A photo posted by LZZY HALE (@officiallzzyhale) on
PRINCE, sad to say, has passed on!!! He was a Giant. My deep condolences go out to his family, friends and fans.
— Gene Simmons (@genesimmons) April 21, 2016
Now Prince…..?? This year has been absolutely BRUTAL! Prince, Bowie, Frey, Emerson, Kantner, Bain, Martin, Shandling….Carpe Diem everyone! 💜
— Mike Portnoy (@MikePortnoy) April 21, 2016
Sad news of Pat Conroy. Loved Prince of Tides- the book. No disrespect 2 Babs but film not even close. Read it. RIP https://t.co/7djQwDoHlM
— Alex Skolnick (@AlexSkolnick) March 6, 2016
What do we do now? PRINCE. No. I hope you weren’t in much pain…your music saved me time and again.
— Duff McKagan (@DuffMcKagan) April 21, 2016
BROKEN HOPE salutes @Prince—
A genuine artist, a sick guitarist, and one we’ll never see the likes of again. RIP https://t.co/zf96EeRxOR— BROKEN HOPE (@BROKENHOPEBAND) April 21, 2016
RIP @Prince-Your talent is immeasurable & you will be sorely missed. May God Bless your soul. Prayers & thoughts to family, friends & fans.
— MichaelSweet Stryper (@michaelhsweet) April 21, 2016
No, Prince, no. 😢 What the heck??????
— Cristina Scabbia (@MissScabbia) April 21, 2016
So sad to hear of Prince's passing; one of the greatest musical talents of my lifetime. Maybe of the 20th century. RIP.
— Slash (@Slash) April 21, 2016
Regardless if you were a fan of his music or not, Prince was an enormous influence and an true artists with a unique creativity that made him release a staggering 39 studio records, 13 EP’s , 104 singles and 139 music videos through his career, including many that created controversy by the mix of religion and sexual themes. Point being, the man was a legend and he deserves the respect he’s always gotten by those above and all his fans around the world and throughout history.
Check out his last performance at the Halftime Super Bowl show back in 2006 and see why Prince meant something big in the music industry. Farewell, The Artist Formerly Known as Prince.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7NN3gsSf-Ys&feature=youtu.be