Bruce Springsteen: I had a great kinship with Prince

Bruce Springsteen felt like he had a "great kinship" with Prince.

The 66-year-old rocker was left devastated when the ‘Kiss’ hitmaker passed away at his Paisley Park home in April – after an accidental overdose of the drug fentanyl – because he taught him a lot about being an entertainer and he had a great affinity with the late star.

He said: "It was a terrible shame. It was a great loss and a tragedy. I felt a great kinship with Prince. And he was a guy, when I’d go to see him, I’d say, ‘Oh, man, OK, back to the drawing board.’"

The ‘Born to Run’ hitmaker says Prince – who was 57 when he died – knew "everything" about music, was one of "the greatest showman" on earth and inspired his music.

Talking about a film made about the pop culture icon, which he saw on American talk show ‘The Arsenio Hall Show’, Bruce told Rolling Stone magazine: "There was a film of him on the Arsenio Hall show, where he plays a series of songs in a row. It’s just some of the greatest showmanship I’ve ever seen.

And he knew everything. He knew all about it and then could put it to work.

"Just since the 60s and 70s and your Sam and Daves and your James Browns, he’s one of the greatest showmen to come along. I studied that stuff a lot and put as much of it to use as I can with my talents. But he just took it to another level."

The Boss paid tribute to Prince earlier this year, when he took to the stage with his E Street Band at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, to honour the late musician with a six-minute performance of ‘Purple Rain’ whilst the stage was awash with purple light.

Speaking at the show, Springsteen said: "Prince forever. God bless!"