Minnesota goes purple for Prince birthday

A poster bearing the likeness of the entertainer is attached to a railing at the “Prince Born Day Purple People Party” in New York, Saturday, June 4, 2016. The multi-talented singer, musician and songwriter was found dead in his Minneapolis, Minn. home on April 21. Prince Rogers Nelson would have been 58 on June 7. AP Photo

NEW YORK—The state of Minnesota on Tuesday celebrated “Prince Day,” with residents encouraged to wear the music legend’s signature color purple on what would have been his 58th birthday.

Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton, in a proclamation making June 7 this year Prince Day, hailed the chart-topping singer for his “revolutionary music and iconic identity.”

He also credited Prince, who died suddenly on April 21 from an accidental overdose of painkillers, with boosting the profile and ultimately the economy of the Upper Midwest state.

READ: Prince passes away

“Minnesotans are encouraged to wear purple on Prince Day in honor of The Purple One’s enduring legacy,” said the proclamation issued Monday by Dayton.
READ: Finding overdose killed Prince just the beginning of probe

Prince was born in the state’s largest city Minneapolis, which became known as the hub of his trademark style of instantly danceable funk.

Despite selling more than 100 million albums and being instantly recognizable around the world, the “Purple Rain” star chose to stay in Minnesota, building his state-of-the-art Paisley Park studio complex in the suburb of Chanhassen.

Prince — who had outwardly appeared to be a model of health and played shows that ran for hours — left no will and had no recognized children.

With coincidental timing, a judge in suburban Carver County scheduled a closed hearing to take place on Prince’s birthday to discuss his estate, which has temporarily been put under a professional administrator.

At issue Tuesday will be an objection by a Kansas City man who says he is Prince’s son to a move by the special administrator to hire entertainment industry experts for help on maintaining copyright protection, which the late singer enforced vigorously.

A lawyer for Carlin Williams, a prisoner whose mother says she had sex with Prince in a hotel in 1976, says the administrator’s first priority should be DNA testing and establishing heirs.

The court has already set a June 27 hearing to hear any objections on the plan for DNA tests.