Six years ago today, the music world lost one of the most iconic performers in pop music history, with the death of Prince at the age of 57.
Prince enjoyed a successful and illustrious career in the music industry over several decades, leaving behind a number of tunes that will live on in pop history.
This included dance floor staples like Kiss, 1999 and I Wanna Be Ur Lover, to more emotional tracks including When Doves Cry and, arguably his signature tune, Purple Rain.
However, what you might not realise is that, in addition to being a massive influence over artists in the music scene today, he also had a hand in writing a number of hits you already know and love.
In fact, among his vast discography are a handful of tracks recorded by some of the biggest names in music, including Celine Dion, Chaka Khan, Madonna and Alicia Keys.
Here are just 11 songs you might not know were written by the late, great Prince…
1. Sheila E – The Glamorous Life
This 80s floor-filler reached the UK top 10 in 1984, with Prince serving as the sole writer on the track.
2. The Bangles – Manic Monday
Prince offered this song to The Bangles years after writing it, under the simple psuedonym “Christopher”. It went on to reach the top 10 in countries all over the world.
3. Celine Dion – With This Tear
Album track With This Tear was a gift from Prince to Celine, who wrote it especially for her, for her second English album.
4. Sheena Easton – Sugar Walls
Listening to the lyrics of this song, it didn’t exactly take a genius to work out that Prince was the writer of Sugar Walls, which he did under the pseudonym Alexander Nevermind.
5. Martika – Love... Thy Will Be Done
Later covered by Jessie Ware and Delta Goodrem, Love Thy Will Be Done was co-written by Prince and Martika.
6. Sinéad O’Connor – Nothing Compares 2 U
One of the most memorable ballads of the 1990s, Nothing Compares 2 U was originally recorded by The Family, one of Prince’s side projects. It then gained universal acclaim when Sinéad put her own stamp on it at the beginning of the decade.
7. Prince – Ain’t About 2 Stop, feat. Rita Ora
Few might realise that what would eventually become Prince’s final release before his death actually featured a collaboration with none other than Rita Ora, featuring the oh-so-Prince lyric: “If you’re not a Ritabot, you’re a blood clot.”
Not exactly a surprise that Prince wrote a song for... errr.. Prince, but a surprise collaboration all the same.
8. Alicia Keys – How Come You Don’t Call Me
Few people realise that this early Alicia Keys cut – taken from her debut album Songs In A Minor – was actually a cover of a lesser-known 80s track by Prince.
9. Cyndi Lauper – When You Were Mine
Similarly, this Cyndi Lauper tune – which featured on her breakthrough album She’s So Unusual – was also originally recorded by Prince.
10. Madonna – Hung Up
Back in 1989, Madonna and Prince collaborated on the duet Love Song for her critically-acclaimed album Like A Prayer.
More than a decade later, and she revisited the track for what became her comeback single, Hung Up, lifting the lyrics “those who run seem to have all the fun” and the song’s hook “time goes by slowly for those who wait”, straight from her Prince collab.
11. Chaka Khan – I Feel For You
Both I Feel For You and Prince’s single I Wanna Be Ur Lover were actually written for Patrice Rushen.
While the former went on to become a hit for Chaka Khan, the latter is now considered one of Prince’s trademark tunes.