Did you know Prince actually invented this crazy custom keytar?
Prince, who died suddenly on Thursday, was an unparalleled musical artist, known for his uncanny ability to play many different instruments like an expert. But his talents didn't end at performing -- he actually went so far as to design gear.
Prince is listed as the sole inventor on a U.S. patent for a particular custom keytar, a variant of the keyboard-guitar hybrid that resembles a scimitar. Dubbed the Purpleaxxe, the instrument looks partly inspired by the glyph that served as Prince's name for a good chunk of the '90s.
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After filing with U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, Prince got the official patent in 1994. It's unclear how many often the Purpleaxxe made appearances at Prince's shows, but a Google image search shows it wasn't just a flight of fancy -- the keytar made appearances on stage more than once.
It's unclear if Prince himself every played the Purpleaxxe -- he apparently created the Purpleaxxe for his keyboardist, Tommy Barbarella, according to The Atlantic.
As a design patent, Prince's rights to the Purpleaxxe expired after 14 years, or in 2008. If you'd care to make your own version, the USPTO has detailed drawings for Prince's invention.
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Topics Music
Pete Pachal was Mashable’s Tech Editor and had been at the company from 2011 to 2019. He covered the technology industry, from self-driving cars to self-destructing smartphones.Pete has covered consumer technology in print and online for more than a decade. Originally from Edmonton, Canada, Pete first uploaded himself into technology journalism at Sound & Vision magazine in 1999. Pete also served as Technology Editor at Syfy, creating the channel's technology site, DVICE (now Blastr), out of some rusty HTML code and a decompiled coat hanger. He then moved on to PCMag, where he served as the site's News Director.Pete has been featured on Fox News, the Today Show, Bloomberg, CNN, CNBC and CBC.Pete holds degrees in journalism from the University of King's College in Halifax and engineering from the University of Alberta in Edmonton. His favorite Doctor Who monsters are the Cybermen.
