Morning Shows

How the Network Morning Shows Remembered Prince

By Mark Joyella 

At ABC’s Times Square studios, the video boards outside Good Morning America were purple Friday morning, as network morning shows devoted extensive coverage to the death of Prince, the iconic pop star who died Thursday.

Here’s how GMA opened the morning, devoting the entire top of the broadcast to the legendary star:

Later in the morning, the Harlem Gospel Choir performed a tribute to Prince outside the studios.

At NBC’s Today, the video boards facing the plaza were also turned purple, as was the Orange room–transformed into the “Purple Room” to honor Prince, with hosts sharing celebrity tweets about the icon, and viewers’ favorite Prince songs.

Prince made a number of visits–including some surprise appearances–at Today over the years, including on Bryant Gumbel‘s last day on the program, when Prince appeared–dressed as Gumbel in suit and glasses–and performed for him:

CgpFR-6XEAAAthoAt CBS This Morning, co-hosts Charlie Rose and Gayle King wore purple and shared personal reflections on the star’s life and work. “Prince was a self-taught genius who created his own rules,” said Rose.

Norah O’Donnell added, “he was one of the most daring artists of his era.”

Later, Stevie Wonder performed Purple Rain in tribute:

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