Pantone announces new purple to honor Prince

The Pantone Color Institute, in collaboration with the estate of the late singer Prince, yesterday announced a new shade of purple called “Love Symbol #2” (the symbol he used for several years instead of a name). Inspired by the purple piano that was to have been a part of the his next tour, the color will honor Prince and standardize the shade used across his brand.

Prince died last year of an apparent drug overdose. He was 57.

It’s a nice idea, remembering someone with a custom color. But this isn’t the first time this has been done, nor is it the first time a shade of purple was selected. Remember “rebeccapurple” back in 2014? A far more touching story, with no commercial interests in mind. Just a simple but beautiful memorial for a little girl. And personally, I like that shade of purple a lot better than this one.