The day after the death of legendary singer, songwriter, composer and performer Prince, ABC 20/20 interviewed his longtime friend, drummer Sheila E. She knew Prince for nearly 40 years. In 1978, they meet at a concert where Sheila E. was performing with her father, percussionist Pete Escovedo. Story goes that after the show, Prince told her that he and his bassist “were just fighting about which one of us would be the first to be your husband.”
[Sheila E. reveals her secrets in her memoir, “The Beat Of My Own Drum.”]
Nearly ten years later, during an emotional performance of the song “Purple Rain” in 1987, Sheila E. says Prince turned around to her and asked her to marry him. They were engaged for a while but they never got married. Prince went on to marry backup signer Mayte Garcia in 1996 (they divorced in 1999). In 2001, Prince married Manuela Testolini; they divorced in 2006. Sheila E’s interview with ABC 20/20 will air Friday, April 22 at 10pm. Though they never married, Prince, as you can see below, remained a great love of her life.
The meaning of the word loss has taken on new meaning this day. Thank God, love lives 4Ever #prince
— SheilaEdrummer (@SheilaEdrummer) April 21, 2016
