BillieBalloon said:

From an article. I think it's pretty accurate..what do you think? "Generation X -- people born between the mid-1960s and early 1980s -- would be hardest hit, said the experts, as Prince's music formed the soundtrack to their young adult lives. His demise would have sparked reminiscences about that time, a yearning for people since lost, and regret for hopes and dreams that never materialised. "The fan mourns not only the loss of the celebrity but other aspects of their personal life which have become bound-up with the celebrity," Brennan said. Prince's death also shattered the fantasy of immortality we tend to attach to the beautiful and talented." Also " bottom line: Do not underestimate the grief of Prince fans. "This is bad news for some people," said Riaz. "Much as you would respond to anybody who's received bad news, a degree of compassion and empathy is appropriate " [Edited 5/22/16 5:56am]

I'm not sure I saw a linkback to the original Breitbart article in this thread - here it is.

The term for what the article is talking about is "disenfranchised grief."

For those of us who had no direct connection to Prince, this is what we've been going through.

The day Prince passed I was at work, which happens to be a news/talk radio station. So I had to help break the story on the air. I was almost hyperventilating when I heard the initial unconfirmed report. Once it was confirmed, I was overcome and started crying. Co-workers were generally respectful but some seemed confused. I generally behave quite stoically at work - not at all prone to emotional outburts. So my reaction was a real surprise to everyone around me.

I'm not an on-air personality - I'm part of the techinical side of things. But once the newsroom realized how important Prince was/is to me, they almost immediately wanted me to go on air to discuss his career and impact. There were no other real fans in the building and of course the news was so thoroughly unexpected. I politely waved off requests to talk about initially, but ended up pulling myself together enough to sort of eulogize him. Publically speaking about Prince in that context, on that particular day, was almost like an 'out of body' experience. It was unpleasant. It was emotionally draining. I didn't say the things I really wanted to, but I was glad to be able to say something truly positive about him for those listening.

My dad called me that day, which truth be told is a relatively rare occurance. He and I don't talk that much. I thought maybe he was going to offer something along the line of sympathy, maybe share a memory he might have of the day Elvis died. But he was calling about something entirely unrelated. As I kind of mumbled my answers disaffectedly, he said, "You sound kinda down, anything the matter?"

I didn't want any drama so I just calmly said I was pretty broken up over Prince's passing. What an understatement, but again I didn't want to be dramatic about it. He just kind of went, "Oh." Then he moved back to whatever nonsense he was blathering about before.

Disenfranchised grief. Definitely a real thing.

Thanks for posting this! Yes I agree generationally Gen X ers would have the hardest time dealing with Prince's passing for all the reasons stated. I am really on the cusp of Gen X and Millenialls being born in 1981, sometimes I feel I identify with both generations really, but I first became a Prince fan in 1993 even though I liked some of his songs earlier than that...I bought the Purple Rain album and loved it so much, and got his Hits 3 disc album that just came out at the time and was HOOKED!

So basically being a huge Prince fan for over 20 years, I can relate to those who first got into him earlier than that.

It is so hard with Prince's passing, I commented to my sister "It feels like my childhood is over" He is the only celebrity I have ever felt this way about and I think because his videos/music/photos are all tied into my youth.

With his death it almost illuminated the fact that we are all getting older. I review how I spent my youth and you wonder about all the choices you made or didn't make, reviewing the timeline of your life thus far....it is just amazing how one person can have such a profound impact on you.