One day, while laying out his clothes, Bennett absentmindedly started harmonizing to a demo tape Prince was playing. When her then-husband was hired to do lighting for an early Prince tour, Bennett earned a spot on the tour bus by filming his shows nightly and serving as his wardrobe person. Her story is a fascinating example of how talent, opportunity and chance occasionally intersect to produce wondrous results.

But for all of the 1980s, her life took a turn west specifically toward Minnesota, where she became a protege of Prince.Īs fate would have it, I interviewed Bennett about a week before Prince died. The vocalist stayed with Tombstone, off and on, from the ’70s through 2007. And her life’s course was launched with that decision.īrenda Bennett on the “Purple Rain” tour in 1985. I felt I had nothing to lose by accepting,” she said. “They had a deal with Columbia Records and needed another background singer. Mom had a beautiful voice and guided me,” the musician said.Īt age 21, after returning from a five-month backpacking trip, Bennett was offered a gig as a vocalist in the well-established Rhode Island band Ken Lyon and Tombstone. We’d have folks playing guitar, mandolin and bass. “My parents were musicians and hosted jam sessions at people’s houses. The answer: Brenda Bennett.Īlthough she might not be a household name for all Aquidneck Islanders, the Jamestown resident has been writing songs since she was 12 years old. Here’s a music quiz that might stump you: Name a local musician who is in the Rhode Island Music Hall of Fame, has gold and platinum records, and will be playing in Portsmouth on Saturday night. Brenda Bennett earned a platinum record and a role in “Purple Rain.”

Prince protege