'Stunned' celebrities react to Prince's death
Legendary musician and performer Prince was found dead in his Minneapolis home on Thursday. He was 57.
Prince was briefly hospitalized Friday after his plane was forced to make an emergency landing at Illinois' Quad City International Airport. His representatives told USA TODAY that he had been struggling with the flu.
On social media, a slew of celebrities tweeted their shock over Prince's passing and shared memories of the Little Red Corvette singer.
President Barack Obama called him "one of the most gifted and prolific musicians of our time" and noted that "Prince did it all. Funk. R&B. Rock and roll. He was a virtuoso instrumentalist, a brilliant bandleader, and an electrifying performer."
Singer-producer Ne-Yo called the loss "surreal." "I don’t feel like I knew him well enough to feel the way I feel," he told USA TODAY Thursday. "But then, it speaks to the music and the power of the music. Through the music, we become family. Like, Prince was a musical father to me. Through the power of creativity (and) melody, we were family, so I genuinely feel like I lost a member of my family today."
Spike Lee posted a photo on Instagram and wrote, "I miss my brother."
Billy Idol and Shonda Rhimes tweeted that they could not believe that Prince was actually gone.
"And just like that...the world lost a lot of magic," Katy Perry tweeted. "Rest in peace Prince! Thanks for giving us so much."
The 5-foot-2 Minneapolis native, born Prince Rogers Nelson, broke through in the late 1970s and never forgot where he came from. He continued to live and work there for the rest of his life.
He also gave a leg-up to other musicians such as Sheila E. He also wrote for other performers, including Sheena Easton (Sugar Walls) and the Bangles (Manic Monday).