“If this is my last shh- my last shit
Uhh, it definitely be mad important
And it'd have to sound like a Prince song.” - Chance The Rapper

Prince Rogers Nelson, simply known as Prince -Or the artist formerly known as Prince- was and will forever will be known as an icon. While Prince was a musician, his star power stretches far beyond the confines of the musical world. He was an actor. A sex symbol. A man who toyed with the idea of gender fluidity at a time when calling that idea taboo would have been saying too much about it. He was a risk taker. An enigma. And God damn the man could play the guitar.

Prince was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota in 1958 and wrote his first song at age 7. He quickly realized his own gift and released his debut album in 1978 at just 20 years old. Prince developed his own sound, and helped mold the sound of Minneapolis so that it is extremely easy to tell that song is from Prince, or influenced by him.

Prince changed his name, and went by pseudonyms, throughout his career. The biggest change was that in 1993 he changed his name to:

Yes. A symbol.

If that is not a clear example of Prince's badassness, I don't know what is. The man had the audacity to change his name to a symbol- and he made it work.

Prince also decided to try his chops at acting and directing. Though he has usually played himself, that is a character within itself. Here is a look at his filmography:

Prince also started a meme because of Dave Chappelle’s portrayal of the artist on The Chappelle Show on Comedy Central.

All in all, Prince was and forever will be a cultural icon and he will never truly die because his music will forever be melted onto vinyl and his aura of awesomeness could never be killed. I mean, the guy made purple and frilly shirts fashionable. That kind of cool only comes around every so often.