Coachella Turns Purple As Prince Tributes Poured In

“From now on, this is Prince’s House”, read a screen at Coachella just before LCD Soundsystem performed. Indeed, the final weekend of Coachella belonged to Prince and Prince alone — and rightly so. As one of the most influential artists of our generation, every artist wanted their turn to celebrate his music and share stories about when they had the chance to meet him, or how he influenced their lives and careers.

One of the most touching moments was during singer Mavis Staples’s set, when she spoke about meeting Prince for the first time. She said, “I told my sister, ‘Look, I’m gonna pay it cool.’ [But] here comes Prince coming towards me in a white suit, a Lucite chain and white boots…and I just screamed. Cool went out the window.” Talking about her loss, she mourned, “Yesterday I lost a dear friend… He was the most beautiful spirit I ever met. He was a gentleman… He was respectful.”

As the tributes came pouring in, the expressions of love and devotion for Prince was as varied and diverse as the man himself. Some, like Ellie Goulding, opted for a raw and bare cover of “When Doves Cry," while Gallant and Sufjan Stevens drew out the slow, smooth funk of “Purple Rain.” LCD Soundsystem, on the other hand, went for the upbeat, bouncy “Controversy” to help everyone in the midst of their sadness, Prince would want nothing more than for everyone to channel his infectious energy and dance (or get down and dirty) until they had nothing left.

Check out the best Prince tributes at Coachella below to help you keep going through this thing called life. The Purple One wouldn’t want it any other way.