Prince’s Estate is preparing for a Purple Reign

One Monday in April 2016, Tyka Nelson received a call from her brother, Prince. Tyka worked for Prince in the last four or five years of his life, and he would routinely bounce ideas off her for projects he wanted to get off the ground. That day, he was in search of family information – “more information about Daddy’s side of the family,” Nelson says. “It was the beginnings of his book.”

Three days later, Prince was found dead, in an elevator at his Minnesota compound, from an opioid overdose, including what authorities called “exceedingly high” levels of the drug fentanyl. But the book will still see release. Spiegel & Grau is preparing to publish Prince’s posthumous memoir, possibly this fall. Prince reportedly finished 50 pages; those largely handwritten journals will be filled out with photos and memorabilia.

In the first two years after Prince’s death, little happened in the way of unreleased music, merchandise and other projects. A Carver County judge appointed a Minneapolis bank, Bremer Trust, to oversee and manage Prince’s estate while the confusing legalities – namely, who his official heirs are – were worked out. No will has been found, his estate owed millions in taxes to the government, and dozens of proclaimed heirs flooded the court with suspicious assertions of being Prince’s relatives or children. But thanks to several recent developments, the monetizing and marketing of Prince are now accelerating. Last year, Troy Carter, the former Lady Gaga manager who is currently Spotify’s global head of creator services, was named the estate’s latest entertainment adviser. In turn, Carter hired Michael Howe, a former Warner Bros. A&R executive who worked with Prince during his last few years, to start digging into Prince’s storied vault. In May, a Minnesota court ruled that Prince’s only heirs are his six siblings and half-siblings, giving them a bigger say in the estate’s assets.

Those moves, combined with deals set in place before the family officially took over, have paved the way for an upcoming deluge of Prince products. Starting in the fall, fans will finally be able to hear unreleased music, wear newly commissioned Prince clothing, buy tickets to see an orchestra playing Prince material, and hear Prince songs in movies and TV shows. There’s even preliminary talk of a Prince-themed hotel. Read more from Rolling Stone.