On this day, 7 June 1993, on his 35th birthday, Prince changes his name to an unpronounceable symbol, making him, literally, an icon.

Prince signed his first record contract at age 18 in 1977 when he made a deal with Warner Bros. Records that gave him lots of creative freedom and ensured that he would produce his own material. The arrangement worked out well for both sides, with Warners funding his experimental whims and making loads of money in the process. In 1992, Prince extended the contract in a deal that paid him $10 million for every album selling over 5 million copies, as his previous effort, Diamonds & Pearls, did. But while his label was looking for focused attention on every album in an effort to maximize revenue, Prince wanted to empty the vault, releasing lots of material. When Warners rejected this strategy, Prince made his beef very public, appearing with the word “Slave” scrawled across his face. Since the label owned the “Prince” output, he decided to change his name to something they couldn’t control. Prince announces the name change in a statement that reads, “It is an unpronounceable symbol whose meaning has not been identified. It’s all about thinking in new ways, tuning in 2 a new free-quency.” Since the symbol cannot be rendered on a keyboard, Warner Bros. sends out floppy discs to media outlets with the digital image. Some publications use it, but most refer to him as “The Artist Formerly Known As Prince.” Some fans fudge it like this: O(+>