Madonna and Stevie Wonder pay tribute to his-Purpleness at the Billboard Music Awards.
The Billboard awards ceremony has seen some of the best and worst performances yet for 2016. However, one particular performance was met with mixed opinions- Madonna and Stevie Wonder paying homage to the late artist and his many incarnations.
The performance was preceded by a speech written by Questlove, drummer for The Roots, who described Prince’s influence over him, musically, and delves into the myth that Prince himself had created.
The tribute followed after the speech. The arena was bathed in purple light and the purple-lit wristbands worn by audience members. Madonna sat on a purple throne, adorned in a Prince-like suit with ruffles down the front and sleeves.
Madonna sang Nothing Compares 2 U to a string section and an electronic beat. Images and videos of Prince played behind on a giant screen. At the end of the song, Stevie Wonder then sang into Purple Rain for a surprise appearance that saw the entire audience swaying and singing along.
Though somewhat stripped back, the tribute was still heartfelt and sincere. Despite that, many showed outrage at a white performer paying homage to a black icon.In her defence, Madonna posted Instagram photos of herself wearing flamboyant, Prince-styled clothes. One photo was also captioned, “Anyone who wants to do a tribute to Prince is welcome to. Whatever your age Gender or skin Color. If you loved him and he inspired you then show it!!!!”
Despite the controversy caused by the performance, a tribute is highly personal. What point is there in imitating Prince’s style when Madonna and Stevie Wonder have their style and own, individual ways of thanking a great artist? The performance was a celebration of a musical icon who pushed boundaries in his lyrics, melodies and fashion- not a platform for scrutiny and categorisation.
Watch the performance below.
http://dai.ly/x4c5ogg
