It happened two years ago — Adam Levine of Maroon 5 played a show for Howard Stern‘s birthday. This time Levine was backed by the band Train. Levine chose Prince’s Purple Rain to honor Stern’s milestone and he gave the song the kind of all-in performance that covering Prince demands. The Howard Stern Show posted the footage this week, in honor of Prince’s passing.
Back then, Levine and Stern were both engaged as reality TV personalities, judging and coaching on talent shows. Stern left his post as a judge on America’s Got Talent last year and Levine still mans his chair on the hugely popular talent competition The Voice. What they were (and are) both always looking for in those jobs is somebody with just an inkling, an ounce, a portion of what Prince exuded.
