Academics, journalists, community leaders and former Paisley Park associates will be featured at a Prince symposium April 16-18 at the University of Minnesota as part of the unofficial Prince Week commemorating the second anniversary of his death.
Hip-hop journalist Jeff Chang, author of "Who We Be: The Colorization of America," will deliver the keynote, with Yale professor Daphne Brooks offering a response.
The symposium, titled "Prince from Minneapolis," will feature seminars, panel discussions, a music performance by Shelby J and presentations of various academic papers solicited for the symposium.
Among the topics: "She's always in my hair: What Prince learned about color and sound from Joni Mitchell"; "To make purple, you need blue: Prince as embodiment of the postmodern blues aesthetic" and "We're all members of the animal kingdom: the animal rights legacy of Prince Rogers Nelson."
Panelists include community leaders Andrea Jenkins and Nekima Levy-Pounds; Purple associates Matt Fink, Kim Berry and Mayte Garcia, and Twin Cities journalists Andrea Swensson, Jim Walsh and the Star Tribune's Chris Riemenschneider.
The symposium is being organized by Arun Saldanha, a University of Minnesota associate professor of geography and a major Prince fan.
Other activities during Prince Week include the second annual Celebration at Paisley Park, featuring performances by Sheila E and fDeluxe and culminating with Prince on video with a live band performing at Target Center on April 21.
The Guthrie Theater will stage A Purple Celebration on April 16 with performances by JD Steele and others, poetry readings and a dance party with DJ Jake Rudh.
Donna Grantis, formerly of 3rdEyeGirl, performs April 18 at the Dakota while Liv Warfield will rock the Dakota on April 20. On April 21, Julius Collins will join ex-Prince sidemen Michael Bland and Tommy Barbarella at Crooner's to play Purple music.
