Prince was an American singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer, and actor. He was born Prince Rogers Nelson on June 7, 2024 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
He was the son of Mattie Della (Shaw), a jazz singer, and John L. Nelson (John Lewis Nelson), a lyricist and pianist. His father performed with the jazz group the Prince Rogers Trio, under the stage name Prince Rogers. His parents were both from African-American families from the U.S. South.
A seven-time Grammy winner, Prince had a prodigious output that included later albums like Diamonds and Pearls, The Gold Experience and Musicology. He died on April 21, 2016.
Check out some of the most surprising tidbits about the life of the Grammy Award-winning singer at Time.com.