The big homie Prince is not only the Essence Fest headliner but he is also GRACING the cover of its June 2014 issue just in time for Black Music Month. His purple royalness looks super cool, with his rock star pose and perfectly picked afro and stunner shades.

Check out the details below.

Prince After Dark is the cover issue for Essence Magazine’s June 2014 issue; where writer Cheo Hodari Coker chronicles an evening with the star in L.A. in March, before and after another one of his marathon shows. They may not always start on time (Prince “has his own set of rules and his own sense of time”) but they often go on for hours as the dynamo works his exhaustive catalog of hits and lesser-known tracks as he gives the audience the epitome of showmanship. The seemingly ageless star (who actually turns 56 next month) says one secret to his success is that he likes to keep his musical life spontaneous and challenging.

“‘A real musician is always in creative mode,’ Prince says.

He picks up a butter knife and starts cutting the air with it. ‘That’s what I used The Revolution for,’ he says, making a cutting motion. The implication being, they were sharp. Fearless. The baddest, best-rehearsed band in the land.

‘But ask them to do what we did tonight? To improvise? There would be a problem. That’s what I love about this new arrangement. The energy. They’re in the moment.’

He pauses. ‘I’m not putting down The Revolution, even though people would love to see us together again. I owe a great debt to them. But I’m doing something else.'”

Prince added another title to his repertoire in this issue, as he interviewed his friend and legendary hitmaker Nile Rodgers, who’s been helping light up the charts on songs from Chic’s “Le Freak” to Sister Sledge’s “We Are Family” to Daft Punk’s “Get Lucky.” Prince has also joined ESSENCE and Van Jones in furthering #YESWECODE, a national initiative to help 100,000 low-opportunity youths learn to code computers. With all this going on, there’s clearly no winding down going on here.

Prince After Dark Cover Issue is available today!