One of the greatest voices ever. The Voice season 10 coaches, Blake Shelton, Adam Levine, Christina Aguilera and Pharrell Williams all reacted to Prince’s death just hours after the news broke at the show’s Karaoke for Charity event at Hyde Sunset Kitchen + Cocktail in West Hollywood on Thursday, April 21.
Shelton, 39, remembered Prince for his musical influence that spanned across all genres. “Even though I’m a country artist, he had an impact on me as far as personality and trying to be as cool as him and failing miserably. But, you know, it’s just a blow to earth losing that guy. That’s the only way I know to put it,” he told reporters.
The “Came Here to Forget” singer even likened his grief to some truly heavy topics. “It feels like there’s been some sort of horrible terrorist attack, or something like that, that’s how it feels losing that guy,” he said. “It just doesn’t seem right, especially being so young.”
The Maroon 5 frontman, who has previously told stories of hosting the pop icon at his home for a late-night jam session, said, “I was lucky to call him a friend. Didn’t get to see him enough, especially towards the end. … I’m still really shocked, so I’m kind of processing everything, but I’m going to miss the guy so much.”
The “Little Red Corvette” crooner’s trail-blazing attitude was a major inspiration to Levine as an artist. “ [I was] inspired by how he did things his way, never let anybody deter him from what he wanted to accomplish creatively and musically. As a musician, I can’t tell you how much that’s rubbed off on me.”
![Adam Levine, Pharrell Williams, Christina Aguilera and Blake Shelton](/wp-content/uploads/523020688_adam-levine-pharrell-williams-christina-aguilera-blake-shelton-zoom-2bcbe98f-cc38-4747-b16b-7ce010ee7f66.jpg?w=1000&quality=70&strip=all)
Aguilera described the somber feeling in L.A. after everyone discovered they lost one of the most important musicians of their generation. “Prince obviously is the soundtrack to our lives,” she said. “You know, even though the sun is shining there is a little heaviness in the air. It’s sad that we lost somebody so epic and, you know, his talent was so genuine and authentic, everything he stood for as an artist — you know, there was no plastic or manufacturing there — and I think that’s a lesson and a great inspiration for every future artist of any generation.”
Williams got deep discussing Prince’s short time on earth. “It’s just really hard to imagine that someone only on this planet 57 years could just have that kind of emotional intelligence and depth in his music … It’s so much music and so layered and so many styles and so much intention that it’s hard to believe that his spirit has only been in existence 57 years.”
As Us Weekly previously reported, Prince was pronounced dead at 10:07 a.m. Medical personnel responded to an emergency call about an unresponsive male in an elevator at the singer’s recording studio Paisley Park in Chanhassen, Minnesota, but they were unable to revive him. The seven-time Grammy winner’s autopsy was started on Friday, April 22, but the cause of death has yet to be revealed. Prior to his death, Prince was reportedly experiencing flu-like symptoms.