One of the Best Prince Tributes Was Unintentional

Fans all around the world paid tribute to Prince Thursday night after the singer's shocking death at the age of 57—though what appeared to be one of the most impressive tributes turned out to have been planned in advance. In a bizarre coincidence, the Canadian side of Niagara Falls was lit up purple not for the singer, but for the 90th birthday of Queen Elizabeth II, the Toronto Sun reports. Other Canadian landmarks also went purple for the occasion, including Toronto's CN Tower. In the US, city halls in Baltimore, San Francisco, and Los Angeles went purple in honor of Prince, as did the Superdome in New Orleans.

Bridges and buildings in Prince's home state, Minnesota, were also illuminated purple Thursday night, though widely shared photos of the Eiffel Tower and the Empire State Building joining the tributes turned out to be fake, reports Mashable. The Star Tribune reports that in Minneapolis, thousands of people gathered outside the First Avenue music club, where Purple Rain was filmed, ahead of a free, all-night dance party. "Prince was a child of our city, and his love of his hometown permeated many of his songs," Mayor Betsy Hodges said. "Prince never left us, and we never left him." Click for four awesome quotes about Prince. (More Prince stories.)