—Editor's Note: When the news of Prince's death broke, I was very hesitant to publish any sort of in memoriam story onto CIRCUS. I don't like capitalizing on a death simply because it's news, and would rather do an art inspired contribution instead (like our Bowie inspired shoot a few months back.) I also didn't want to lie and come off as a die hard Prince fan when I wasn't—my relationship with Prince was an abstract one. Whenever a Prince song came on the radio I always remember immediately dancing to the funk and the beat and it quickly being turned off by my mother. She thought he was weird, and would do the same thing to my father whenever he decided to watch a VH1 showing of Purple Rain some weekends. My father loved Prince and he was the first person I texted when I heard he had passed.

So since I was little, I associated Prince with being weird, but that didn't mean I didn't dance or sing along to his life's work as I grew older, and being where I am now, I've realized that being weird truly just means being exactly who you really are. That, and the fact that this artist—this Black artist—broke all the original barriers that segregated gender, sexuality, and more with it never once costing him his artistry or fame. He was fearless, he was an original.

-Bianca Betancourt, Editor-in-Chief

He was sex, he was soul, he was funk, and for a while, he was was even nameless. We could go on and on proclaiming our eternal love and mourning for The Purple One, but his legacy rests in his name: he'll forever be our Prince.

—song selections by Isaiah Fabre

"When Doves Cry"

"I recently received this album [Purple Rain] on vinyl as a gift, still sealed in the wrap. And this song alone still tempts me to rip it open and enjoy the work of a true musical genius. The bridge is my favorite part. As he sings about the similarities he has with his parents, his backing vocals, low and somewhat soothing, replace or make up for the bass-less instrumental."

"Do Me, Baby"

"This is just too nice to not be one of your favorite records from Mr. Coco. Sweet, sultry, vibes for late night. What more could you ask for?"

"Let's Go Crazy"

"The other one of his #1 singles off this album, this Super Bowl performance was something I was able to experience live, and this guitar solo blew me away. His transcendence through generations is like no others."

"I Wanna Be Your Lover"

"I like this performance at Capitol Theater because Prince keeps a sly little smirk on his face for most of the time, one can only imagine how many 'lovers' were seduced by this funky proposal. Another song covered by EVERYBODY only adds to the examples of his impact on the culture. The intro is like being in a space shuttle with a helmet that's too small. Then when the beat drops and the synths and guitar take over, it's just heaven."