may have hosted the Grammy Awards this year, but she wasn’t the only member her family to receive a lot attention on music’s biggest night.  when he was spotted in the audience with his face elaborately painted to resemble a skeleton. 

Prince, who also goes by the stage name Note Marcato, is the 19-year-old son . Many people watching the ceremony were startled to see this spooky figure sitting among the celebs and were yearning for an explanation. If you looked closer at the photos Prince that circulated online, you would notice that he was seated next to Swizz and his two other sons, Egypt and Genesis. Even after solving the mystery who was lying behind this mask, the question still remained why Prince had decided on this Grammy look. Now, we finally have an answer. 

On Saturday night (Feb. 15), Swizz spoke before Prince’s performance at an art event at the West Hollywood EDITION Hotel and he brought up the viral moment. “I thought he was super brave,” he said. “One thing that we do in the household is we let our kids express themselves, and he just showed up as his character, Note Marcato, and I was like, ‘You know we’re going to the Grammys right?’ And he’s like, ‘Mm hmm, I’m going like this.’ You know. I thought it really worked for him.” 

Swizz Beatz Explains Why Son Wore Skeleton Face Paint To GrammysAxelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic/Gettys

Beatz continued to praise his son’s creative means self-expression. “If my son] wants to wear his makeup and his costume and he’s being respectful, then I’m all for it,” Beatz says. “I give him the space to have his own sound, his own style, his own everything. I’m here to love him anyway.”

So, there you have it. The face paint is part the Note Marcato alter ego. His mother, Nichole Levy, told Rolling Stone that he has been dressing up “as part his brand” ever since he was a child.