Chaka Khan and Chuck D to speak, but not perform, at Prince-centric Celebration

R&B legend Chaka Khan and hip-hop stars Chuck D and Doug E. Fresh will speak, but not perform, at Paisley Park’s annual Celebration, which runs Thursday through Sunday.

The event honors the life and work of Prince, who would have turned 65 on Wednesday. Musical guests booked for Celebration include Sounds of Blackness, Mint Condition’s lead singer Stokley, members of Prince’s band New Power Generation, Prince protege Shelby J and Minneapolis youth choir Known MPLS.

General admission tickets for the entire weekend are $572, with fees. Single day tickets are available for the first time and are $289.45 for Friday and Saturday. There are also dance parties from 11 p.m. to 2 a.m. Friday and Saturday — the latter will also pay tribute to Tina Turner — and tickets are $113.50. For more details, see paisleypark.com.

Chaka Khan

Prince and Khan first met in 1977, when he was recording his debut album in Sausalito, Calif. In 1984, Khan released her cover of Prince’s “I Feel for You,” which featured Stevie Wonder on harmonica, and watched it become a massive hit, peaking at No. 3 (behind “Purple Rain” and Wham’s “Wake Me Up Before You Go Go”) and spending 26 weeks in the Hot 100.

The pair became friends and worked together on several songs over the years before joining forces to create Khan’s ninth album, “Come 2 My House,” which Prince released on his NPG Records label in 1998. That same year, Khan and Prince toured together and he joined her each night to perform “I Feel for You” as a duet. In October 2014, Khan (and Wonder) headlined a Prince memorial concert at St. Paul’s Xcel Energy Center.

Chuck D and Doug E. Fresh

Public Enemy’s Chuck D and Fresh will speak about working with Prince as well as the 50th anniversary of hip-hop. Prince began dabbling in the genre on his 1991 album “Diamonds and Pearls” and his NPG rapper, Tony Mosley, will also speak on the panel.

Other Celebration events

Other Celebration events include listening sessions of previously unreleased Prince music, an interview with Prince’s luthier Andy Beech, screenings of archival Prince concert footage, Paisley Park tours and panel discussions devoted to Prince’s legacy and his fondness for the number 7.

“Prince was and remains the greatest artist of all time,” said Prince’s onetime attorney and manager L. Londell McMillan in a news release. “We are honored to gather yet again to celebrate Prince and his legacy at Paisley Park this year with many who knew him up close or adored him from afar.”

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