Music round-up: Minnesotan artists pay tribute to the Purple One
April 21, 2017
To commemorate the one-year anniversary of Prince's death, we wanted to round up some of our favorite local tributes to the pop icon. While dozens of others are out there, our list was limited to songs available online. Here's our top picks for Minnesota-made Prince homages and covers.
Tickle Torture, “Full Court Press (feat. Velvet Negroni)”
Released a few months after Prince died, this video features Tickle Torture and Velvet Negroni serenading their hometown hero as they tour Minnesota, from First Avenue to Paisley Park’s memento-filled fence.
The Bad Plus, “The Beautiful Ones”
Having built a reputation for their innovative jazz covers of popular songs, the Bad Plus deliver on this instrumental track on their latest album, It’s Hard.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jkOdmnOrizs
Har Mar Superstar, “When You Were Mine”
One of Minnesota’s biggest pop stars covered this track for the A.V. Club last August. This week, he told Jade why he loves it so much.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K_ERgz_UnAI
Reina Del Cid, “When You Were Mine”
Reina brings her folk rock sound to this classic hit, making for a beautiful tribute.
Tufawon - Solstice 2
This track details Tufawon’s return to Minnesota just one day after Prince died, and how “Purple Rain” [was] the backdrop” throughout that summer.
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Jillian Rae, “When Doves Cry”
Jillian Rae adds a special touch to her rendition of “When Doves Cry” with her impeccable violin skills and sultry vocals.
Bob Mould, "When You Were Mine"
The day Prince died, Bob Mould was playing a MicroShow at the Turf Club. A few days later, he wove this cover into his First Avenue set.
And of course, we can’t forget last year’s block party with First Avenue, where local artists performed Prince covers. Here, you can find audio of tributes from Tiny Deaths, PaviElle, deM atlaS, Sarah White, Chastity Brown, Cameron Kinghorn and Lizzo.
Jackie Renzetti studies journalism and political science at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. She is an editor at the Minnesota Daily and co-hosts Radio K’s “Off the Record.”
