Nile Rodgers felt he'd been ''struck by lightning twice'' when Prince died.

The 64-year-old artist has admitted he was deeply wounded when he heard the news the 'Purple Rain' hitmaker had died in April this year, although it inspired the title of his album titled 'It's About Time'.

Speaking on his website NileRodgers.com, he said: ''When Prince suddenly died, it was like I'd been struck by lightning twice. It made me ''see'' why I named the next CHIC album ''It's About Time.'' Time is so important, and what we do with it is everything.

''I flashed upon this fact: 2017 is the 40th anniversary of the world's most influential disco in history, Studio 54. It's also the 40th anniversary of CHIC. Our song ''Le Freak'' became one of Studio 54's massive anthems.''

And the 'Le Freak' hitmaker has revealed he plans to ''pay homage'' to the venue, which propelled him into the industry internationally, next year.

He said: ''In 2017, we will pay homage to the club that put us on the international map by doing a series of concerts, afterparties, VIP Packages, films and singles - then drop the full album along with a BIG SURPRISE!

''In 2016, I couldn't release an album about the joy of life in A Year of So Many Deaths.''