Sheila E. Talks BET Awards Prince Tribute: “This was for him.”

On Sunday night (June 26), Sheila E. took the stage at the 2016 BET Awards and performed a percussive, heart-rattling tribute to the late funk legend Prince. And no doubt, it was emotional night for the Purple One’s protégé, who reunited with her former New Power Generation band-mates for the performance.

“I knew we were going to sit there and cry,” Sheila E. revealed to Billboard. “And that’s exactly what happened. So I said let’s just play first and we started jamming.”

She continued, “It wasn’t about us taking a bow…This was for him.”

The singer and percussionist also talked about the creative process behind the tribute.

“I chose songs I was already doing in my shows that Prince and I had collaborated on and written together,” she revealed. “I also thought I should start off on the drums with ‘Housequake’ because I knew everybody would appreciate that song. Then the rest of the order came naturally. When I showed BET my list, there were two songs we agreed on: ‘Housequake’ and ‘Erotic City.’ They wanted me to end with ‘Glamorous Life,’ but I said absolutely not.”

Read the full recount on Billboard.

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