Prince was found dead at his home Thursday in suburban Minneapolis. He was 57.<\/p>\n
Hickenlooper \u2013 who has long held a passion for music and plays several instruments \u2013 said of Prince: \u201cHe was someone who was fearless in attacking musical genres and really going places no one had ever gone before.\u201d<\/p>\n
The governor responded Thursday to a question asked by reporters about Prince\u2019s untimely passing, which has shocked the world. Prince set the tone and paved the path for generations of musicians, with impacts that haven\u2019t been fully realized.<\/p>\n
Beyond hits such as \u201cLittle Red Corvette,\u201d \u201cLet\u2019s Go Crazy\u201d and \u201cWhen Doves Cry,\u201d Prince was an improvisational musician, letting the soul of the music guide.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople would say, \u2018You can\u2019t do this, you can\u2019t change your name,\u2019 or, \u2018You can\u2019t completely change \u2026 your style of music.\u2019 And he wouldn\u2019t fight. He would say, \u2018Great, great,\u2019 and then he would go off and do it,\u201d Hickenlooper said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s just not that many people that are in the world that are that talented and so focused on their own drum beat that they are able to go against the tide of popular opinion and what the media says about them. He just did it his way.\u201d<\/p>\n
Not all of Prince\u2019s music was loved by all, a simple side effect of experimentation. But the governor said that\u2019s also what made Prince special.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not crazy about all of his music,\u201d Hickenlooper said. \u201cBut some of his music I loved. Some of it, I think I just hadn\u2019t heard it enough. But I always admired him as someone who had the courage to be out there.\u201d<\/p>\n