April 21 marked the one-year anniversary since the death of legendary music icon Prince.
The world was devastated by the news, as the musician served as an inspiration for so many and, accordingly, celebrities from all different music genres paid tribute to the artist with performances and covers in the days following his death. Throughout the past 12 months stars in the music industry have continued to celebrate the "Purple Rain" singer and his legacy by organizing collaborations and tributes of the artist's most iconic songs, filled with purple outfits and lighting, in true Prince fashion.
When the news that Prince had died reached Coachella on opening day of Weekend 2 the dusty festival grounds were dotted with purple outfits, scarves, and accessories as music lovers reacted to the news. Ellie Goulding, who headlined the opening night on April 22, was one of the first performers of the weekend to respond and gave a moving and somber performance of "When Doves Cry" in front of a purple backdrop before transitioning into her hit song "Lights." She didn't comment on her choice to include the last-minute tribute but, the huge crowd that attended her performance didn't need an explanation. Coachella continued with more tributes and dedications from performers such as Usher and Major Lazer throughout the weekend.
During the iHeartCountry festival in Las Vegas on April 30th the Zac Brown Band performed an upbeat cover of the singer's well known hit "Let's Go Crazy" and the crowd went wild for the classic.
On the opposite coast in Miami, Beyoncé opened her Formation World Tour on April 27 and included a tribute to her 2004 Grammys performance partner in a "Purple Rain" moment that had the crowd swaying with their smartphones out and singing along.
Beyoncé continued to remember the singer throughout the year and made dedications to Prince when she stopped in his home state of Minnesota in May.
In New York City stars honored the singer across the city on Thursday night after the news was first released. Even Broadway got a touch of Prince magic when Jennifer Hudson and the cast of The Color Purple gave the audience a performance of "Purple Rain" in lieu of taking bows at the end of the show.
All the way in Paris, Mariah Carey gave a heartfelt speech and dedicated one of her songs to the pop music icon during her Sweet Fantasy show on the same night.
By the time the Billboard Music Awards came around on May 22 the producers of the awards had drafted Madonna and Stevie Wonder for an official Prince tribute during the show. Madonna came decked out in purple glitter and ruffles and sang "Nothing Compares to U" before Wonder joined her for an emotional rendition of "Purple Rain," the crowd singing and swaying along.
Wonder gave another crowd pleasing performance at the BET Awards' epic Prince tribute concert on June 26. Tori Kelly and Wonder. dressed in purple glitter and plaid. sang the pop hit "Take Me With U." They weren't the only ones in attendance to show their purple pride and many guests came wearing extravagant Prince-inspired outfits.
On the Fourth of July Demi Lovato gave a shout-out to the all-American music icon at her performance at the Boston Pops Firework Spectacular and chose to sing "Purple Rain" to the crowd. In October, Prince fans were finally able to attend the tribute concert that his family was organizing in St. Paul which included purple glitter raining from the ceiling and appearances from Jessie J., Chaka Khan and members of Prince's band The Revolution.
On New Year's Eve the music industry looked back at all the great musicians that passed away in 2016 and in Nashville Keith Urban honored Prince, David Bowie and others in his Music City Midnight concert.
By February, Grammy producers had been planning how they were going to honor the innovative artist who changed the music industry in so many ways, for several months. Bruno Mars and the Time, a band Prince managed, were chosen for the Grammys tribute in Los Angeles. Mars, channeling the late icon in a sparkly purple suit and a Prince-reminiscent pompadour, performed a charged rendition of "Let's Go Crazy" that got the crowd dancing.