Prince’s half-brother Alfred Jackson is speaking out about the star.
As previously reported, on Thursday, April 21, The Purple One was found dead at his Paisley Park estate in Minnesota. He was 57. While Prince has touched the lives of many, it’s become more and more evident since his death that very few knew him well.
Now, one of the “Little Red Corvette” singer’s five half-siblings has come forward to shine a little light on the reclusive musician’s mysterious childhood. “When he was younger, my father and mother would put him on stage, and he was dancing on stage and you should have seen him out there — he wasn’t but 5 years old,” Jackson told “Entertainment Tonight” of Prince, adding that he was a big fan of James Brown.
Jackson went on to claim he influenced Prince’s music when he was developing his own sound. He recalled playing the piano alongside the Purple Rain star in their mother’s basement, where Prince mimicked everything Jackson did but “faster” and “better.” Adding, “He was a genius — wherever he heard music, he could copy it just like that — like he had a photographic memory or something.”
Although Jackson admitted he hadn’t spoken to Prince in 15 years, he remained proud of his brother’s accomplishments. “I was so happy he was making it for himself,” he said.
He talked about how a once self-conscious Prince evolved into the humble and confident star we all grew to love. “I think he wanted to be taller because he wanted to be a basketball player,” Jackson revealed.
Standing 5-foot-2, Prince went on to play for his high school basketball team. “They did him a favor because he was the smallest on the team,” said Jackson. “He did better than some of the rest of them.”
Some have even argued Prince’s talent on the court is just as legendary of that of his skill off the court. In a “Chappelle’s Show” skit that aired in February 2004, Charlie Murphy shared a tale of the time the music icon and his crew whooped Murphy and his friends in a basketball game at Prince’s home in 1985. “This cat could ball, man. He was crossing cats like Iverson. He was getting rebounds like Charles Barkley. Prince was incredible,” Murphy said.
Meanwhile, Jackson, along with Prince’s other half-siblings and full sister, Tyka Nelson, have been named in a petition to appoint a special administrator for Prince’s estate. On Wednesday, April 27, a Minnesota judge appointed Bremer Bank to oversee the singer’s massive estate, which is estimated to be worth $250 million amid reports the singer had no will in place.
