Prince

Prince Rogers Nelson, billed simply as Prince, came out of Minneapolis in the late 1970s and played most of the instruments on his early records himself. Albums such as 1999 and Purple Rain, the latter tied to the 1984 film of the same name, turned his mix of synth-funk, rock guitar and gospel-tinged balladry into mainstream hits. Sign o' the Times followed in 1987.

He worked with backing bands including the Revolution and the New Power Generation, and wrote songs that became hits for others, among them "Manic Monday" for the Bangles and "Nothing Compares 2 U" for Sinéad O'Connor. During a dispute with Warner Bros. in the 1990s he replaced his name with an unpronounceable symbol. He recorded prolifically at his Paisley Park complex outside Minneapolis, where he died in 2016.