Prince Autopsy Set To Determine How He Died

A post-mortem examination has begun to determine what caused the death of pop superstar Prince.

It follows reports on TMZ that the 57-year-old underwent treatment for a drug overdose just days before his passing.

Quoting multiple sources, the website says Prince left hospital against the advice of doctors.

He was found unresponsive and alone in an elevator at his complex in Paisley Park, Minnesota, on Thursday.

The emergency services attempted CPR on arrival but could not revive the singer-songwriter.

As tributes came from the likes of Madonna and Barack Obama , shocked fans have laid bouquets and purple balloons outside his home.

Hundreds of people braved the rain to mourn and celebrate the life and work of the music icon - and his sister, Tyka Nelson, came outside to tell the crowd: "He loved all of you. Thank you for loving him back."

An all-night dance party was held in Prince's honour at the Minneapolis nightclub where he filmed Purple Rain.

In New York, roughly 1,000 people attended an impromptu street party organised by Spike Lee - wearing purple and dancing along as Prince's music played from loudspeakers.

At a news conference in London, president Obama paid tribute to Prince as an "extraordinary" performer.

He revealed he played Purple Rain and Delirious on a turntable at the US ambassador's London residence this morning to "warm up" for the day's bilateral meetings.

A transcript has emerged of the frantic 911 call made by someone inside the superstar's compound, in which they said: "The person is dead here … and the people are distraught."

When asked by an operator for the address, the caller appeared confused and said: "Um, we're at Prince's house."

Barely a week before his unexpected death, Prince had become unwell during a flight and his private jet was forced to make an emergency landing in Illinois.

He is understood to have spent a few hours in a hospital in Moline before leaving and returning to his home.

Prince cancelled two shows because of ill health in the run-up to his death.

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Medical examiners have warned it could be days before they have preliminary findings from the post-mortem examination, and weeks for toxicology results.

Officials at the Carver County Sheriff's Office are investigating the circumstances of his death, and say foul play "is neither suspected nor not suspected".

Prince's passing has stunned the music industry - dominating the world's newspapers and prompting other artists to pay tribute.

Jennifer Hudson and stars of Broadway's The Color Purple performed a rendition of Purple Rain on Thursday night and posted a video online.

His first wife, Mayte Garcia, told People magazine Prince was her "everything".

They were married in 1996, and in that year, they lost their son a week after he was born with a rare genetic disorder.

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"I loved him then, I love him now and will love him eternally. He's with our son now," she added.

Those gathered outside his home in Minnesota are not just celebrating a global pop icon, but remembering a neighbour.

Chris Spiegel, who attended one of the intimate performances Prince regularly performed at Paisley Park, said: "We were in there and he performed until 3am, it was so special. He shook my hand.

"It's just very sad that he's gone. We were very proud of him."

The nation's favourite Prince song is Purple Rain, according to a Sky Data poll. It came out top with 39%, followed by When Doves Cry on 24%. 1999 was voted third with 13%, as was Raspberry Beret, while Kiss was picked by 11%.

:: Watch a special programme looking back on Prince's life tonight - Prince: End Of The Purple Reign - on Sky News at 9.30pm.

:: Sky Data interviewed a nationally representative sample of 1,010 Sky customers by SMS on 22 April 2016. Data are weighted to the profile of the population. For full Sky Data tables please click here.