Prince's Ex Mayte Garcia Talks Death of Their Son at 6 Days Old: 'I Don't Think He Ever Got Over It'
Prince's ex-wife, Mayte Garcia, is opening up about the devastating loss of their son, Amiir, more than 20 years later.
Garcia, a dancer, married the late singer in 1996. She gave birth to Amiir in October of that year, though the baby had Pfeiffer syndrome type 2 -- a rare genetic disorder -- and lived only six days. In an interview with People for her new memoir, The Most Beautiful: My Life with Prince, Garcia describes the heartbreaking experience she and Prince went through.
"I don't think he ever got over it," Garcia, 43, tells the magazine of Prince's feelings about the loss of their child. "I don't know how anybody can get over it. I know I haven't."
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Garcia was 22 when she got pregnant. She says that one day, she began bleeding, after which a doctor recommended getting an amniocentesis to test for genetic abnormalities. However, Prince was against it after the doctor warned it carried a risk of miscarriage. She said the "Purple Rain" singer went on his knees and prayed for the baby's health, though more complications become apparent as her pregnancy went on. Still, he continued to refuse medical intervention.
Garcia gave birth via c-section on Oct. 16. Although the couple was initially ecstatic, it quickly became obvious that their child faced various health complications.
"I don't know how to describe the look on my husband's face. Pure joy," she says about Amiir's birth. "And then they held the baby up to those harsh lights. The elation on my husband's face turned to pure terror.”
"They brought the baby over to us," she continues. "He was curled on his side, gasping shallow little gulps of air. Because there were no lids to blink, his eyes looked startled and dry. I caught hold of his tiny hand, saying over and over, ‘Mama loves you, Mama's here.'"
"'Why is he not crying?'" she recalls Prince asking.
Amiir underwent multiple procedures, though he continued to struggle to breathe. He died six days after his birth.
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Prince died last April due to an accidental opioid overdose. He was 57 years old.
Last June, Garcia joined Jennifer Hudson, Janelle Monae, Sheila E. and more stars in paying tribute to the legendary singer at the BET Awards.
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