Just steps away from the front doors of First Avenue in downtown Minneapolis sits a new commemorative street name honoring a Minnesota icon who put the venue on the map.
On what would have been his 64th birthday, 1st Avenue between 7th and 8th streets, was officially renamed Prince Rogers Nelson Way. The name was officially approved by the Minneapolis City Council in May.
"We're not here to celebrate his birthday because towards the end of his life, he didn't celebrate birthdays, but we are here to appreciate his naming way," said longtime attorney and manager L. Londell McMillan.
Related
Prince Rogers Nelson Way runs alongside the same First Avenue wall where Prince's gold star is painted. A 100-foot tall mural debuted just a week before the street renaming sits one block away.
"I really challenge everyone to see this as not just a commemorative street name for an amazing icon in Minneapolis, but it's a way of being," said Joan Vorderbruggen, a Crown Our Prince Mural organizer who pushed for both the mural, and the street renaming, along with the Minneapolis Downtown Council.
Vorderbruggen recalled her days of dancing at First Avenue which often led to after parties at Prince's Paisley Park home in Chanhassen, saying that Prince was all about community and being together.
"It really has been the greatest honor of my life working on this project," Vorderbruggen said. "We made a decision that we were going to be in community when we made this mural."
Unveiling the street name capped off a week of events honoring Prince, including Celebration at Paisley Park. Fans from across the United States and the world made it a point to be in Minneapolis to celebrate.
"I specifically came out here for this and the festivities to crown our Prince," said Vicki Perry, who traveled from the San Francisco bay area. "I'm so stoked and happy to be apart of this. I just wanted to be here."
Perry arrived in Minneapolis on June 1 and attended the mural's unveiling last Thursday and continued to celebrate Prince throughout the week.
"Prince is such a big part of the core of my being," Perry said. "I've been listening to him for 43 years. He's everything to me."
Perry recalled some special moments with Prince, including some on-stage appearances.
"I've seen him countless times in-concert and at a lot of after shows. I've actually been on stage with him five times and actually sang 'Kiss' into the mic with him at one of the concerts. I also got to meet him at an after show."
Organizers hoped on Tuesday that the mural and street renaming would be just the start of things to come to honor Prince's long lasting legacy in Minnesota.
"There's a lot more we can do together," added McMillan.