Over his more than successful career, Prince participated in very few interviews, but to this day journalist, poets, and musicians continue to write about him. The Spectrum staff has gathered 10 of the most heartwarming and emotional essays written about the legend himself, Prince.

10. Kurt Loder, “Prince Reigns,”

“It’s hard to have that much power and have close friends,” William Blinn reflects. “It’s tough for him. But if he does not have close friends, then neither do I feel that his solitude is threatening or harmful to him. Some people … well, you know, the four-in-the-morning phone call: “I’m alone, what do I do?’ I think Prince is perfectly capable of handling it. He might make that phone call, and he might be alone. But he knows what to do.”

9. Robert Palmer,The Pop Life; IS PRINCE LEADING MUSIC TO A TRUE BIRACISM? 

“The fact that Prince can do everything makes him one of the most impressive new pop talents of the past few years. It’s also the secret behind his apparently effortless fusion of black and white pop styles. The music transcends racial stereotyping precisely because it’s almost all Prince; Prince himself transcends racial stereotyping because, as he once put it, ”I never grew up in one particular culture.” One suspects that as time goes on, more and more American pop will reflect a similarly biracial orientation. If that’s so, Prince’s black-white synthesis isn’t just a picture of what could be, it’s a prophecy.”

8.Nichole Perkins,How Prince Taught Me About Female Sexuality

“Prince’s early catalog taught me things about myself I wasn’t even aware I was learning at such a young age. When I made the decision to become sexually active as a teen, I imitated Prince’s moans and gasps from his songs as practice to make sure I would sound sexy in bed.”

7 .Ahmir Thompkins,The Time I Went Roller-Skating With Prince

“He took them out and did a big lap around the rink. Man. He could skate like he could sing. I watched him go, so transfixed that I didn’t even notice Eddie Murphy appearing at my arm. “I’m going to go get your phone for you,” he said.”

6.Claire Hoffman,Soup With Prince

“When asked about his perspective on social issues—gay marriage, abortion—Prince tapped his Bible and said, “God came to earth and saw people sticking it wherever and doing it with whatever, and he just cleared it all out. He was, like, ‘Enough.’ ”

5.TA-NEHISI COATES,All of My Purple Life

“One thing I’ve appreciated about Prince, as I’ve aged, is that he knows how to sing about sex, like a man honestly singing about sex. Much of the misogyny in hip-hop (and I suspect in other art forms too) comes from, forgive my profanity, a deep-seated fear of ass. Men—and especially young men—fear what they will do to be physically involved with a woman with whom they’re infatuated. They compensate by turning this fear on its head and projecting.”

4.The Undefeated, I met Prince. He told me something with a look. And I got it.  

“When I met Prince on that surreal night, I was working for another outlet, in a job I loved with journalists who were doing amazing work. Since then, I’ve moved over to ESPN’s The Undefeated, a project that allows me, a black journalist, to use my experience as a black woman, as I do my work. This new project values my lived black experience.”

3.Dodai Stewart,On Prince, blackness, and sexuality

“But Prince leaves us, as part of his legacy, a wholly unique case study for a black American male pop star. He didn’t have the put-upon polish or narrow repertoire of the smooth, seductive, quiet storm R&B guys. He wasn’t all braggadocio and brawn like the rappers. He had little in common with the slutty, sloppy, noisy rock gods. His sexuality funneled his feelings—emotional, spiritual, and intellectual—into a quest for physical connection, one twin’s craving to find, touch, and melt into his other half, which would then, finally, finally, make him whole.”

2.Wesley Morris,Prince Knew What He Wanted: Sex, Soul and You

“It wasn’t until I took a long drive with a friend that I actually heard “Darling Nikki.” We listened to “Purple Rain” four times. That’s enough to catch new things. We heard the screaming. It wasn’t from an orgasm but from pain. He’s wailing. Then we noticed that pain was tied to the frenzied beating of a kick drum and wondered if the P.M.R.C. heard that, too.”

1.Rob Sheffield,Prince: Nothing Compared 2 Him

“His songbook is full of buried treasures like “Dolphin” on The Gold Experience, or his version of Joan Osborne’s Nineties Lilith-Fair rock fave “One of Us” stranded on Emancipation, or “Laydown” from a few years ago, with the greeting, “From the heart of Minnesota / Here comes the purple Yoda!” He remained a mystery man who could reduce any room to rubble just by walking in. He made an unforgettable appearance at the Grammy Awards in 2015, strolling in and twirling his cane and giving a contemptuous eyeroll, basking in his ovation and awarding Album of the Year. “Albums still matter,” he said, as he opened the envelope. “Like books and black lives.” And then he strolled off into the night — one step ahead of everybody else, as always.”