Prince will return to streaming on February 12

Prince’s catalog from Warner Bros is confirmed for release to streaming services on Sunday. NPR received word of the date from Napster, and the songs are expected to be available on most other streaming platforms as well. Napster will have a special editorial experience to mark this launch. Some companies have not issued any comment yet about Prince’s return, although the earliest signs emerged last week. Others have been more vocal.

For instance, iHeartRadio reached out to RAIN News with plans for a bit of celebration around the date. iHeartRadio said its platform would be redecorated in purple to mark the arrival of “his purple majesty.” It will also feature a special station called iHeartPrince with stories of how Prince impacted pop music as well as clips of the Purple One himself talking about his work and career. This show will be available to both free and paid iHeart subscribers.

The Warner collection includes many of the prolific artist’s best-known hits, including Purple Rain and 1999. However, Prince also had some parts of his published catalog with uncertain ownership following his death. Universal Music Group announced that, after much back and forth, it has secured the rights to manage those recordings. This batch includes his songs released through NPG Records and his vault of unreleased tracks.

Anna Washenko