Thereâs a rumor that Justin Timberlakeâs Super Bowl Halftime performance will include a hologram of Prince. And, as expected, Prince fans arenât too thrilled with the idea.
For one, the two artists had a reported beef that began in 2006, when Prince performed at a post-Emmy Awards party. The singer allegedly told the crowd: âFor whoever is claiming that they are bringing sexy back, sexy never left!ââan obvious reference to Timberlakeâs hit song âSexy Back.â
One year later, Timberlake appeared on Timbalandâs âGive It to Meâ track, in which he seemingly responded to Princeâs jab:
We missed you on the charts last week
Damn, thatâs right you wasnât there
Now if se-sexy never left, then why is everybody on my shi-i-it?
Donât hate on me just because you didnât come up with it
Oh, and there was also the time that Timberlake made fun of Princeâs height at the 2007 Golden Globes.
But despite all that petty drama, the main issue many people have with a Prince hologram is that the artist opposed this kind of stunt well before it became a trend. In a 1998 interview with Guitar World, Prince was asked if he would ever consider using digital editing to perform with an artist from the past.
âCertainly not. That's the most demonic thing imaginable. Everything is as it is, and it should be. If I was meant to jam with Duke Ellington, we would have lived in the same age,â he said. âThat whole virtual reality thing... it really is demonic. And I am not a demon. Also, what they did with that Beatles song [âFree As a Birdâ], manipulating John Lennon's voice to have him singing from across the grave... that'll never happen to me. To prevent that kind of thing from happening is another reason why I want artistic control.â
Furthermore, Princeâs good friend and collaborator Sheila E. also said Prince had expressed his disapproval of being featured as a hologram after his death.Â
Letâs just hope this Prince hologram rumor isnât true. We donât need another reason to hate on Timberlake.Â