Laura Mvula Remembers Prince In New MOJO Magazine

British art-SOUL phenomenon Laura Mvula remembers inspiring private time with the much-missed Prince in the latest MOJO magazine. “I’m still struggling to digest his death,” she revealed, before relating how the purple genius put her back on her feet after a knockback.

“The night of the Brits, 2014, he presented the Best British Female Solo Artist award because, he said, he thought I was going to win,” Mvula recalls, “and when I didn’t win he invited my sister and me around to where he was staying. When I arrived, 3RDEYEGIRL were there. There was food. There was someone on the decks. It was like a music video from the ’90s.

“He greeted me at the door and asked me how I was feeling. I said, To be honest, I feel disappointed that I feel disappointed, and he said he understood. He talked to us for hours about the music business, about owning your own music – how that was the goal. We talked about my album, and he asked me what was coming next. I didn’t need a Brit award any more. I was sitting talking with Prince. Where would you rather be?”

Mvula joins an array of superfans and former Prince collaborators in picking the songs that best exemplify his unique artistry, while MOJO writers remember a series of fascinating encounters: an early visit to London in 1981; a ringside seat for the pomp of his mid/late-’80s imperial phase; candid confessions from his exile from the spotlight (and indeed the name Prince); plus the story of his recent renaissance, as marked by his 2014 MOJO cover story.

Read the full, 10-page Prince tribute in the latest issue (July 2016 / #272), on sale from May 24, 2016.

Also this month: MOJO celebrates 50 years of Bob Dylan’s Blonde On Blonde with 22 pages of Bob coverage, plus a specially commissioned free tribute CD – Blonde On Blonde Revisited. The album, and the magazine, is also available as a Limited Vinyl Edition package – order yours while stocks last.

PHOTO: Alamy