Carmen Electra on Prince's Sudden Death: I Am 'Heartbroken to Hear About the Loss of My Mentor'

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More and more celebrities are flocking to offer their thoughts, condolences, and mere shock when it comes to Prince’s sudden death. Carmen Electra is among the latest.

“I was so shocked and heartbroken to hear about the loss of my mentor, Prince,” Electra, 44, tells PEOPLE. “The world has lost a truly incredible spirit and musical genius. What a blessing it is to be one of the chosen ones who had the chance to work so closely with him. ”

Adding, “He gave me my name, he believed in me, and he has inspired an entire generation. I will always love him … ‘ Sometimes it Snows in April.'”

Electra and Prince, who briefly dated in the early ’90s, have a long history together – the legendary musician took the young Electra (née Tara Leigh Patrick) seemed to have helped launched her career in Hollywood.

“I received a call from Prince saying, ‘I think you should be your own artist and not back up anyone else. I’m going to write you a song and if you like it, you can record it,'” she previously said during an interview on Oprah’s Where Are They Now? on OWN. “The name of the song was ‘Carmen on Top.’ My name is Tara, so I was confused. I loved the song. I loved it, but he said, ‘You’re not a Tara. You’re not Tara. You’re Carmen.’ ”

The iconic singer died at the age of 57.

He was found unresponsive in an elevator about 9:45 a.m. on Thursday after sheriff’s deputies received a call for medical help from his Paisley Park Studios home outside Minneapolis. He was pronounced dead less than 25 minutes later, authorities in Minnesota say. A cause of death has not been determined.