Originally from southern Illinois, Algiers moved to Minneapolis in the late 1980s and immersed himself in Prince's orbit — absorbing not just the music but the aesthetic, the mystery, the constant reinvention. He was flamboyant, tattooed, and pierced, forever changing his appearance, sometimes even his name (at different times, he went by Reginal, Troy, Syptymber, e, and John Thomas). One memorable look involved an enormous beaver fur coat. For Algiers, style was never superficial; it was identity, performance, and survival. He spent most of his money and free time building an extraordinary Prince collection, carefully framing and preserving each piece. His small house near Lake Nokomis became less a home than a personal shrine, every surface crowded with framed posters, rare records, photographs, and memorabilia. Algiers and Kevin met more than twenty-five years ago, working together at a record store. They connected immediately as collectors and music obsessives — Algiers especially loved hearing Kevin's stories about his years at The Wax Museum in South Minneapolis, where Prince would occasionally stop in and ask, 'What's new?' Kevin had brushed against Prince's world in ways Algiers found almost mythic: packed crowds at First Avenue for surprise performances, parties and concerts at Paisley Park, even a brief appearance in crowd scenes in Purple Rain. When Algiers moved to Wyoming in the mid-2000s, Kevin helped pack the collection piece by piece, wrapping every frame and artifact in muslin cloth. The process became almost ceremonial. But after the move, the collection ended up stacked in a garage, untouched for years — and then Kevin lost contact with Algiers entirely. When he learned the collection might be lost, he drove thirteen hours across the country to save it. A few years ago, Kevin came across Algiers' obituary online. Algiers had died in 2021 at the age of 56. The notice mentioned his love of music and Prince, but offered little sense of the devotion that shaped his life. Kevin likes to imagine that when Algiers finally did meet Prince, he was certainly dressed spectacularly. This painting by K.L.Peterson is a portrait of Algiers and was part of Algiers' private collection.
