Apollonia Radio

Born Patricia Kotero on August 2, 1959, in Santa Monica, CA, the woman rechristened Apollonia by Prince became one of a number of female artists in the '80s to benefit from her association with the Purple One. Her career began as a model and actress in the late '70s, including an appearance on the television show CHiPS. In 1984, she landed the female lead in Prince's Purple Rain (during which time he changed her name) and replaced Vanity in the female trio Vanity 6, performing with them in the movie under the name Apollonia 6. The three scored a minor hit with "Sex Shooter," but it was as Prince's duet partner on "Take Me with You" from the soundtrack that she made a greater chart impact. When the two had a falling out over the direction of her career, Apollonia 6 split up and Kotero ended her association with Prince. She went on to appear in several minor films during the period (reportedly declining to appear in the Purple Rain follow-up, Under the Cherry Moon) before landing a role in the night-time drama Falcon Crest during 1985-1986. Apollonia finally released her debut in 1988, but the fairly pedestrian set of R&B/dance songs failed to make much impression on the music-buying public, and the album soon vanished from sight. She remained active (if slightly underneath the radar) as an actress during the ensuing decade with small television roles and minor films and even issued an exercise video. In 1997, Apollonia released a Spanish/English album entitled Stay with Me, but it seems likely that her profile will never be as high as it was during the years of her association with Prince. Instead, her future might be more behind-the-scenes, as Apollonia returned to school and received a degree in filmmaking. ~ Tom Demalon