TMZ reports that Prince's body was found early this morning at his Paisley Park compound in Minnesota.The site adds that the artist, whose full name was Prince Rogers Nelson, had a medical emergency last week that required his private jet to make an emergency landing in Illinois. However, he assured his fans that he was O.K. at a concert the following day. Reports at that time indicated that he was battling the flu. He had recently cancelled two shows due to health concerns.
The multi-talented Prince -- singer, musician, composer, dancer, producer, filmmaker, and more -- came out of Minneapolis. In 1978 he signed his first record deal with Warner Bros., and was soon creating platinum-selling albums. His double album 1999 gave us hits like the title track “1999,” "Little Red Corvette" and "Delirious,” and in 1984 his movie Purple Rain, and its accompany soundtrack, brought him even greater success (and an Oscar for Best Original Score). He would later direct his films Under the Cherry Moon and Graffiti Bridge as well. And in 1989, Prince recorded the soundtrack for Tim Burton's Batman, which of course gave us "Batdance."
In 1993, Prince changed his name to a symbol that could not be pronounced, and hence became The Artist Formerly Known As Prince for a time. He continued to write, produce and perform music until his death, selling over 100 million records worldwide, winning seven Grammy Awards, a Golden Globe, and an Oscar. He was also inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2004. Talk to Senior Editor Scott Collura on Twitter at @ScottCollura, on IGN at scottcollura and on Facebook.