Prince stayed awake for 'over six days' before his death

BDC News

Los Angeles, April 25 (IANS) Prince stayed awake for ‘154 hours straight’ before his death, according to the singer’s brother-in-law.
Maurice Phillips, who is married to the late singer’s sister Tyka Nelson, made the revelation as the star’s family gathered at his home for a memorial following his private cremation.
“I was with him just last weekend,” Maurice said. “He worked 154 hours straight. He was a good brother-in-law.”

The revelation comes despite claims the 57-year-old musician was hooked on sleep-inducing painkillers.
New reports have suggested the ‘Purple Rain’ singer was taking high levels of the painkiller Percocet, which is believed to have led to him overdosing on his private jet five days before he died.
Prince was found dead at his home at Paisley Park in Chanhassen, Minnesota, on Thursday at the age of 57.
Police authorities have said his death is not attributable to suicide or obvious trauma.
“Prince’s medical history is at the top of detectives’ list when it comes to cause of his death,” a police source said.

Over the weekend, a man who claims he supplied Prince with opiate painkillers spoke about the extent of the pop star’s addiction.
Named only as Doctor D, the man said he sold drugs to him between 1984 and 2008.
He claims Prince would spend up to $40,000 (£27,700) on six month supplies of highly addictive Dilaudid pills and Fentanyl patches.
Doctor D told the Mail Online: “I first met Prince in 1984 while he was filming the movie Purple Rain and he was already majorly addicted to opiates – I didn’t hook him on drugs.
“He was already a really heavy user.
“I’d say his habit was costing him about $200-300 a day, but that didn’t matter to him as he had plenty of money – he never ran out.”

The interview paints a picture of an artist riddled with anxiety.
He added: “He needed the drugs because he was so nervous – he could be nervous in a room with just five people in it.
“He wasn’t really a party guy, he was doing these drugs so he could feel at ease around people.
“He was scared to go out in public, he was scared to talk to people and didn’t like to go on stage. He had the worst case of stage fright I’d ever seen.
“A lot of performers rely on drugs to make them feel confident on stage, but he was by far the worse.
“I remember when he was filming Purple Rain he was buying a lot of drugs – I think it was nerve wracking for him to have to perform in front of cameras and people every day so he needed the drugs.”