Publicist: Pop superstar Prince dies at his Minnesota home

The artist known as Prince has died at the age of 57, according to his publicist.

TMZ first reported Prince's body was found at his Paisley Park compound in Minnesota early Thursday morning.

Prince made an appearance at Paisley Park last Saturday, just one day after he was hospitalized with flu symptoms. On April 15, TMZ broke the story that Prince was rushed to the hospital after his plane made an emergency landing in Atlanta.

Our sister station, KMSP in Minneapolis, reports:

Just after 1 p.m. EST, the Associated Press confirmed with the publicist that Prince died at his home in suburban Minneapolis. No details were immediately released.

Prince won seven Grammy's in his musical career and was known for megahits "When Doves Cry" and "Let's Go Crazy".

The man born Prince Rogers Nelson stood just 5 feet, 2 inches and seemed to summon the most original and compelling sounds at will, whether playing guitar in a flamboyant style that openly drew upon Jimi Hendrix, switching his vocals from a nasally scream to an erotic falsetto or turning out album after album of stunningly original material. Among his other notable releases: "Sign O' the Times," "Graffiti Bridge" and "The Black Album."

He was also fiercely protective of his independence, battling his record company over control of his material and even his name. Prince once wrote "slave" on his face in protest of not owning his work and famously battled and then departed his label, Warner Bros., before returning a few years ago.

In 2004, Prince was inducted into the Rock and Roll of Fame, which hailed him as a musical and social trailblazer.

"He rewrote the rulebook, forging a synthesis of black funk and white rock that served as a blueprint for cutting-edge music in the Eighties," reads the Hall's dedication. "Prince made dance music that rocked and rock music that had a bristling, funky backbone. From the beginning, Prince and his music were androgynous, sly, sexy and provocative."

A small group of fans quickly gathered Thursday outside his music studio, Paisley Park, a white building surrounded by a fence about 20 miles southwest of Minneapolis. A Carver County sheriff's squad car was parking in the studio lot.

We'll update this story as more becomes available.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.