Prince Inducted Into Songwriter’s Hall Of Fame On ‘Purple Rain’ 40th anniversary
Prince has been finally inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. The ceremony took place after a 40th anniversary screening of the star’s Grammy- and Oscar-winning film Purple Rain on 27 July at the Target Center, Minneapolis.
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The honour was presented to Prince’s half-sister Sharon Nelson by Gilbert Davison, Prince’s former manager and President of Paisley Park Enterprises. “You will always remember these songs,” Sharon told CBS. “That’s the award that he wanted. More than any other award in his lifetime – to be known as a great song writer.”
Prince had previously been inducted on a Songwriters Hall of Fame ballot, getting the most votes of any nominee in 2013. However, the organisation has a policy that inductees, if alive, must attend the awards gala.
“Due to his schedule, Prince had to defer his induction until such time as he could be there,” Linda Moran, President and CEO of the Songwriters Hall of Fame, told Bring Me The News. “His induction was very important to him, and he planned on attending the June 2016 gala.” Prince died in April 2016.
The Purple Rain screening also included performances from Jamecia Bennett and Shapeshift Dance Company. Prince’s studio/home-turned-museum, Paisley Park, also showed the film to a sold-out audience Saturday night.
In a new interview with NPR to mark the 40th anniversary of Purple Rain, Morris Day – leader of The Time and one of the film’s stars – reflected on how Prince might have chosen to mark the occasion.
“[Prince] never liked staying in the past,” said Day. “He was always evolving. Once Purple Rain was done, he was on to the next. But now that I’m thinking about it, he might have thrown a big celebration at Paisley Park for the fans. Probably would have been one hell of a jam session.”