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*Prince fans were not about to let Justin Timberlake get away with his tribute to the late icon without comment…and most of it continues to be negative.
As previously reported, JT performed Prince’s “I Would Die 4 U” with a giant projection of the artist on a large billowing sheet behind the stage. (Watch above.) This method was apparently chosen after Sheila E shut down his original plan to perform with a Prince hologram.
Family, I spoke w/Justin 2nite and he shared heartfelt words of respect for Prince & the Purple fans. I look 4wrd 2 seeing what I’m sure is going 2 be a spectacular halftime show. There is no hologram. ??? pic.twitter.com/mhVXBfBa1B
— SheilaEdrummer (@SheilaEdrummer) February 4, 2018
In a 1998 interview with Guitar World magazine, Prince was asked directly about the use of digital editing to “create a situation where you could jam with any artist from the past.” He was unequivocally against it.
“That’s the most demonic thing imaginable,” he said. “Everything is as it is, and it should be. If I was meant to jam with Duke Ellington, we would have lived in the same age. That whole virtual reality thing … it really is demonic. And I am not a demon. Also, what they did with that Beatles song (Free As A Bird), manipulating John Lennon’s voice to have him singing from across the grave … that’ll never happen to me. To prevent that kind of thing from happening is another reason why I want artistic control.”
Many fans thought JT’s projection of Prince on the sheet was too close to the hologram concept that Prince clearly hated and took to social media with their disapproval.
The Prince tribute would’ve been cool… except Prince specifically said he didn’t want that, right? Even in death, Prince continues to be misunderstood.
— Adam Best (@adamcbest) February 5, 2018
Yo… Prince didn’t like JT… JT didn’t like Prince… It’s well documented… why would you put his sprit through that.
— Avan Jogia (@AvanJogia) February 5, 2018
Jemele Hill, formerly of ESPN and now senior correspondent at The Undefeated, tweeted a GIF of Prince expressing befuddlement.
Meanwhile Prince is in heaven like pic.twitter.com/lcsjAufAUF
— Jemele Hill (@jemelehill) February 5, 2018
The only way this could turn out ok if if Prince’s mummified hand shoots down from space and chokes out JT on the 35 yard line
— Ben Silverman (@ben_silverman) February 5, 2018
Sinbad also took to social media with more details about Prince’s original beef with JT, which started with JT’s 2006 release of “Sexy Back.”
At the time, Prince joked that sexy never left. Timberlake responded with a verse in “Give It To Me” in which he said to Prince, “Don’t hate on me just because you didn’t come up with it.” Later, Timberlake mocked Prince’s hight by lowering the mic stand to accept an award on his behalf at the Golden Globes.
Watch Sinbad detail these events in the video below.
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