A tribute by Madonna to iconic musician Prince, who'd tragically passed away last April 21st, shall be a key part of the 2016 Billboard Music Awards.
Both are iconic musicians in their own right, having dominated the music scene especially during the 80s. Upon hearing of Prince's untimely passing, the Material Girl had posted an old photo of themselves on her Instragam stating, "He Changed The World! A True Visionary. What a loss. I'm Devastated. This is Not A Love Song." An obvious reference to the duet "Love Song" both had performed for a track on her album "Like A Prayer" which Prince had helped produce in 1988.
The pair had briefly dated in 1985 but had a falling out some years later which had stretched into a decades-long feud with Madonna sniping at Prince in a 1994 interview and Prince slamming her back during a concert in London as late as 2007.
The two seemed to have worked out their differences by 2011 when Madonna attended a sold out concert by Prince at NYC's Madison Square Garden with Prince playfully calling out to Madonna. Relations between the two must have remained cordial as Prince had invited Madonna for a private performance at Paisley Park in October 2015. After wrapping up a concert nearby, Madonna had attended; even starting a dance party onstage with her entourage before seating herself to watch the performance.
The history between the two would've more than justified Madonna's being chosen for the tribute. But there has been a bit of an uproar from the fans as Madonna shall be the only artist to be featured. A campaign for 7,000 signatures has been going the rounds to petition BMA to allow other artists such as Sheila E. and Lenny Kravitz to perform as the fans deem it a tribute deserved by Prince.
BMA Executive Producer Mark Bracco however, defends the decision to have Madonna pay tribute as Prince had been a peer, a colleague and a friend. Even talk show host Wendy Williams, known for trash talking celebrities - including Madonna - has deemed the choice appropriate as she'd stated, in reply to the protest,
"Oh really Prince People? Who do you think is worthy?" she had asked.
"There are three people in the trinity of greatness in music as far as pop stars that are age appropriate ... and two of them are dead: Michael, Prince and Madonna. That's it!"
In any case,it is but fitting that Prince be given a tribute by none other than the Queen of Pop herself.
