Justin Timberlake will not be performing with a hologram of Prince during the Super Bowl halftime show.
Justin Timberlake will not be honoring the late music legend Prince with a hologram during the Super Bowl halftime show in Minneapolis.
As rumors circulated that Timberlake -- who is an avid Prince fan -- would be performing alongside a reflective hologram of the "Purple Rain" singer, members of Prince's inner circle expressed their criticism over the reported move, including his longtime collaborator, Sheila E.
"Prince told me don’t ever let anyone do a hologram of me," she shared on Twitter. "Not cool if this happens!"
Sheila later said she spoke with the pop superstar and confirmed that there will not be a hologram of the late singer -- who was born in Minneapolis -- during Sunday night's performance.
"Family, I spoke w/Justin 2nite and he shared heartfelt words of respect for Prince & the Purple fans," she wrote. "I look 4wrd 2 seeing what I’m sure is going 2 be a spectacular halftime show. There is no hologram."
In a 1998 Guitar World interview, Prince dubbed the idea of performing with an artist when they're already dead thanks to technology "demonic."
"That's the most demonic thing imaginable," the singer said nearly 20 years ago. "Everything is as it is, and it should be. If I was meant to jam with Duke Ellington, we would have lived in the same age. That whole virtual reality thing... it really is demonic. And I am not a demon."
Timberlake, 37, has been a fan of Prince since he was 4 years old and was devastated to hear of the music legend's passing in April 2016.
"[Prince is] somewhere within every song I've ever written," the "Man of the Woods" singer said at the time. "I am sad, but I will smile when I think of every second that I had the fortune of being in his company. We have lost our greatest living musician. But his music will never die."
For more on Timberlake's highly anticipated halftime show, watch the video below.
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