Prince and Apollonia.Photo: Richard E. Aaron/Redferns
It’s been six years sincePrince’sdeath from an accidental prescription drug overdose in 2016but for his longtime friend Apollonia Kotero, the memories will never fade.
Friends for nearly four decades, Apollonia and Prince first connected when she auditioned for the romantic lead inPurple Rain.
“He was very gentle and very shy,” recalls Apollonia, who now hosts a podcast,Apollonia Studio 6. “I remember he had spaghetti. And I never knew in that moment that my odyssey with Prince would last a lifetime.”
Brenda Bennett, Apollonia Kotero and Susan Moonsie as Apollonia 6.Michael Ochs Archives/Getty
Kotero, who later toured with Apollonia 6, the singing trio Prince created for Purple Rain, stayed close with him over the years, through frequent late-night phone calls (“he never slept,” she recalls) and visits to Los Angeles or his Minnesota home.
“We were family,” she says. “We trusted each other.” And though they never dated, “I had a little mini crush one time,” she admits. “He was performing ‘Computer Blue’ and he was oily and shirtless and for a moment I was like, ‘He’s really sexy,’ but then I got myself together. We had great chemistry. But our romance was only onscreen.”
The pair also occasionally acted more like brother and sister. Says Kotero: “He was a prankster! He’d put salt in my desserts. And he was competitive! He challenged us, but he also brought out the best of us. He was a perfectionist.”
Prince and Apollonia in Purple Rain.Warner Brothers/Photofest
Prince, who lovedBruno Marsand theAncient Aliensdocumentary series, also showed Kotero his vulnerable side.
“The fame became a challenge for him,” she says. “He was modest. But he became alive on stage and became the Prince we all know and love.”
The last time Kotero would ever see her beloved friend, at a party just weeks before his untimely death, she recalls a more subdued Prince.
Apollonia Kotero.Mark Von Holden/Invision/AP/Shutterstock
In the days following his death, “I became severely depressed,” she says. “It was horrible.”
Thanks to the help of therapy, Kotero was able to move through her grief — and hold close the pieces of their friendship that stand the test of time.
“Prince gave me beautiful gifts,” she says. “He is my legacy. And he will live on forever.”
source: people.com
