Sheila E. is making a biopic about her longtime relationship with Prince. On Friday, the famed percussionist announced Girl Meets Boy in a brief Facebook post.
Coming soon…Sheila E. to release “Girl Meets Boy”, a film telling the beautiful story of her time with Prince. Stay Tuned. ? Posted by Sheila E. on Friday, January 22, 2021
Apollonia, band members, and sources, who worked with the “Purple Rain” legend are accusing Sheila E. of cashing in on his legacy. (Excerpt from The New York Post)
Sheila and the Purple One share a long history. They first met at a concert in the late ’70s but didn’t begin collaborating until the Purple Rain sessions years later. Last year, Sheila released a song dedicated to Prince called “Lemon Cake” ahead of the fourth anniversary of his death, which caused Apollonia Six (another longtime Prince collaborator) to go nuclear, accusing Sheila of being “egotistical,” constantly lying and “using Prince in death,” claiming he “refused to acknowledge” her during the last five years of his life. We can only imagine what Apollonia thinks of Sheila’s new project.
They even claim Prince was estranged from the singer, and a source told Page Six he wanted nothing to do with her at the time of his death.
“He was pissed off because she put information about him in a book without his permission. They got into a huge fight and did not speak for five years. She was not allowed at Paisley Park. He wouldn’t allow her to come to shows. It was a complete shut-out … And now she acts like she’s the widow, ” the source said.
Sheila E. has been one of Prince’s most visible proteges’ since he passed away in 2016. She served as musical director of CBS’s “Let’s Go Crazy: The Grammy Salute to Prince” show that aired last week on the anniversary of his death.
“After Prince died, it seems like everything she does is focused around Prince or his legacy and it’s strange because we never saw her at Paisley Park,” Prince’s NPG sax player, Adrian Crutchfield, who joined his band in 2012 and played with him until his death, told us.
He added, “I never heard Prince say she’s not allowed [there], but there were definitely certain moments of shade if she was mentioned. And management did explain she wasn’t welcomed.”
Apollonia sounded the alarm on their relationship after Sheila E released the tribute song, “Lemon Cake,” ahead of the anniversary show.
“You are so desperate to be relevant … Prince refused to acknowledge you for 5 years before his death because of your lies … He sent you legal letters as you were slandering him,” she wrote.
Susan Rogers, who worked from 1983 to ’87 as Prince’s in-house recording engineer at his Paisley Park complex in Minneapolis.
She recalled an incident when a group of musicians were waiting for Prince to arrive for a rehearsal.
“Somebody was talking about a person he described as an asshole,” Rogers told The Post.Recently, one of Prince’s former protégés, “Purple Rain” co-star Apollonia Kotero, ignited a public catfight with another, Sheila E.Getty Images
“Suddenly, Prince appeared, and asked, ‘Who is the asshole?’ Nobody wanted to rat the person out . . . then Prince said, ‘There’s only one asshole around here. And that is me.’”