Minneapolis legend Prince lives on
WITH songs like Purple Rain and Kiss, the enigmatic Prince enchanted fans around the world. The music icon died unexpectedly a year ago, aged 57, and nowhere is he missed so much as in his home town of Minneapolis.
The white walls of Paisley Park, Prince’s private compound, now doubly protect the music superstar’s remains.
Inside, Prince’s ashes lie in a miniature model of the building. It’s decorated with the purple symbol the singer for years used as a pseudonym, encased in a matte glass box high on the wall above the atrium.
The walls are painted with a blue sky and white clouds; the plush carpet shows a sun, moon and stars. The pale Minnesota sun shimmers through the skylights, and on the upper gallery, white doves sit in an aviary.
“This was a place where Prince would spend a lot of time and feel comfortable,” says Mitch, a guide leading a group on a tour of Paisley Park. “His family felt this would be a good spot to place his urn.
“For many people this is a very emotional moment of the tour,” he adds, gesturing to two side tables holding boxes of tissues.
From outside, Paisley Park is an unassuming, utilitarian, nearly windowless building, built in 1987 and tucked away in Chanhassen.
But behind its sturdy walls was Prince’s home, where he kept his belongings, his art, costumes and instruments, and where he built himself a musical paradise withrecording studios, stages and video production facilities.
It was Prince’s place of refuge, where he worked, played, lived – and died.
On April 21, 2016, he was found dead in a lift having taken an accidental overdose of fentanyl, a powerful painkiller.
“It has been a bitter-sweet year. It’s been a challenging year. It’s been a fun year. It’s been a roller-coaster,” said Aaron Meyerring, owner of the Electric Fetus record store, a 20-minute drive from Paisley Park.
The 33 year old was one of the last people to see Prince alive. Five days before his death, the musician visited the store. Prince was recovering from an apparent overdose and struggling with a painkiller addiction, but Meyerring said he didn’t look sick.
“He looked like Prince – he looked freaking cool. He looked like a rock star, he looked like a 57-yearold rock star,” he recalled.
Prince bought six CDs, among them some by Stevie Wonder and Carlos Santana, and sent a thankyou via Twitter. The tweet features on T-shirts and mugs sold by Electric Fetus as souvenirs.
The store’s Prince section has, over the past year, evolved into something of a shrine, with purple flowers laid next to the albums that launched worldwide classics.
Meyerring offers a wide selection of souvenirs and an array of articles in purple, the singer’s favourite colour. Of the shop’s five best-selling CDs, four are by Prince.
In October, Paisley Park reopened as a museum, managed by the company that handles Elvis’s Graceland in Memphis, offering guided tours for about $40 (R533).
Visitors enter a world of Prince’s unique personal life and style: Photos and memorabilia, blacklight, candles, plush carpet and purple upholstery.
Prince’s private residence is not part of the tour, but an occasional glimmer of his life comes through: A framed photo of his father, a table tennis set in a recording studio, a candle on the video-editing table.
“He was a quiet guy. We never talked – we spoke with our minds,” said Julius, who worked as a security guard for Prince for years and now keeps watch on the museum.
But “he ran the entire show”, he added. Even so, Prince remained an enigma, even to those who saw him daily. “He was a mystery to everybody,” Julius said.
Paisley Park, Electric Fetus and the First Avenue nightclub, where Prince was a long-time regular, have planned a number of events to commemorate the anniversary of the performer’s death.
Minnesota’s historical society is planning an exhibit of the singer’s costumes, and tour operator Randy Luedtke says his Prince-themed tours are sold out.
Fans around the world mourned Prince’s unexpected death, but the loss is felt most in his home town, said Meyerring.
“His shoes will never be filled,” he said. “He is definitely a local legend. This will always be his home. We will always still have that.” – dpa