Pop superstar Prince dies at his Minnesota home at age 57
(AP) — Prince, one of the most inventive and influential musicians of modern times with hits including Little Red Corvette, ''Let's Go Crazy and When Doves Cry, was found dead at his home on Thursday in suburban Minneapolis, according to his publicist.
"Few artists have influenced the sound and trajectory of popular music more distinctly, or touched quite so many people with their talent," Obama said in a statement.
The dazzlingly talented and charismatic singer, songwriter, arranger and instrumentalist drew upon musicians ranging from James Brown to Jimi Hendrix to the Beatles, creating a gender- and genre-defying blend of rock, funk and soul.
The title song from "1999," his funky and flippant anthem about an oncoming nuclear holocaust, includes one of the most quoted refrains of popular culture: "Tonight I'm gonna party like it's 1999."
Prince was a Little Richard for the '80s, from his wispy moustache and tall pompadour to his colorful and suggestive outfits, the counterpart to the openly erotic lyrics that made him one of the most sexually daring artists of the era.
[...] his greatest legacy was as a musician, summoning original and compelling sounds at will, whether playing guitar in a flamboyant style that drew on Jimi Hendrix, switching his vocals from a nasally scream to an erotic falsetto, or turning out album after album of stunningly innovative material.
The album received mixed reviews, but his second album — called "Prince" — sold more than a million copies and launched his run of hit albums and singles over the next few years.
Horrified by the song's reference to masturbation, she helped launch an organization dedicated to a labeling system for explicit content, the Parents Music Resource Center.
A nationwide debate about censorship soon followed, including congressional testimony from Frank Zappa among others, and the refusal by some record sellers to offer releases deemed in need of advisories.
A press release about the memoir said Prince would "take readers on an unconventional and poetic journey through his life and creative work," and include stories about his music, family and the "people, places and ideas that fired his creative imagination."
About 200 fans had gathered by Thursday afternoon outside Paisley Park, Prince's home and music studio, where his gold records are on the walls and the purple motorcycle he rode in his 1984 breakout movie, "Purple Rain," is on display.