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Niagara Falls Illuminated In Purple The Day Of Prince’s Death, But The Tribute Wasn’t For The Deceased Musician

By Tara West
Published on: 15:02 PST, Apr 21, 2016

Fans across the globe are mourning the loss of the musical icon Prince. Many Prince fans have already taken to social media to express their grief. However, for fans wanting to grieve the loss of the American icon more publicly, Niagara Falls may be the perfect place to plan a tribute to the music legend. Niagara Falls is illuminated in purple this evening, but perhaps surprisingly to many Prince fans, it has nothing to do with the musician’s death. The falls were actually illuminated in the royal color in honor of Queen Elizabeth’s 90th birthday.

Syracuse.com reports that Niagara Falls ran purple this evening and many Prince fans voiced their excitement that such a magnificent tribute was made to the American music legend.

However, as the publication points out, the special purple illumination of Niagara Falls on the day of Prince’s death was simply a coincidence. The falls were scheduled to turn purple today in honor of Queen Elizabeth’s 90th birthday. The royal tribute, however, was overshadowed by Prince’s death. It appears that those at the falls feel the tribute is more fitting for Prince than the royal Queen herself.

The Buffalo News notes that the purple tribute took place for 15 minutes starting at 10 p.m. EST and was performed as a tribute to the aging British monarch.

“The falls will be lit up by the Illumination Board for 15 minutes at 10 p.m. to honor Queen Elizabeth II’s 90th birthday. Purple is considered the British royal’s official color, recognizing her record reign as monarch of the United Kingdom, Commonwealth and Canada since 1953.”

The Illumination Board is headed by representatives from both the United States and Canada as Niagara Falls borders the two countries. With Canada still under the British monarch’s reign, it is not surprising that the Canadian representatives would choose to honor Queen Elizabeth in such a way. In fact, it was noted that Queen Elizabeth has visited Canada over 20 times during her reign and is detailed by the British monarch’s website as being “the country most visited by the queen over her reign of 60 years” with her feeling so close to the country that she calls it her “second home.”

While the Illumination Board was using the purple as an official recognition of the Queen, it seems that her majesty’s birthday tribute was deemed more fitting for the passing of an American music icon, Prince. Perhaps it is fitting that the Illumination Board is headed by both American and Canadian representatives as the purple falls not only signified a significant moment for Canadians regarding the Queen’s 90th birthday, but also for Americans as they mourn the loss of a music legend.

Those attending the lighting ceremony noted that the purple Niagara Falls was the ultimate “purple rain” with the tribute holding more meaning today due to the untimely passing of the singer and songwriter. Prince died in his home today at the age of 57. He had recently battled the flu, but had mustered up enough strength to appear on stage Saturday before fans to let them know that they should go ahead and wait a few days before wasting any prayers on him.

“Wait a few days before you waste any prayers.”

What do you think about the coincidental timing of Niagara Falls running purple for Queen Elizabeth’s 90th birthday on the same day that Prince would unexpectedly pass away?

[Image via Chatham-Kent Police/Twitter]

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