Autism Rocks was founded by Sanjay Shah to help raise awareness and funds for the condition following his own son's diagnosis at the age of two.

This weekend CeeLo Green, Mark Ronson, Larry Graham, Morris Day & The Time take to the stage at London's Hammersmith Eventim Apollo for a special tribute to the late Prince on behalf of Autism Rocks.

Prince's last concert in the UK was for the charity two years ago.

Shah spoke to Pressparty ahead of the Prince tribute concerts.

How much support did Prince give to Autism Rocks? 

He performed for us without a fee, although we had to pay his costs including travel, hotels and equipment hire for him and his entourage. His tour manager has told me that he has only ever performed for our charity and no other charity. Shortly before his death, he was planning shows in Dubai and London for after summer in 2016 as well as a fund raiser in his home, Paisley Park.

What are your memories of him - did you meet him? 

I met him each of the three times he performed for us, just before he went on stage. I also witnessed his sound check in Dubai in 2015. My memories of meeting him were that he was softly spoken, immaculately dressed and had a lot of perfume! He also had what I would call a killer smile.

How special do you think the London show will be? 

As mentioned above, this is the only charity he performed for. Additionally, his first show for us at Café De Paris in London on 20 May 2014 was his first ever private invitation-only performance in London in his whole career. His 2 Feb 2015 show for us was his last ever performance in London.

I recall asking if we can get one or two of his protegees to perform on the same night (eg Andy Allo, Judith Hill), and he said no but he would put on an extra special performance for us instead. Those who attended will remember his first song was Purple Rain (which is almost always performed as his last song at his shows), and after Purple Rain, he said “What we’re gonna do right now is play 14 hits, and if y’all are still standing we’ll play some more”.

How did you get Morris Day and The Time to take part? 

We reached him very easily through his agent and he agreed to our shows without any hesitation.

What will the setlists be like at the gig? Will The Time play songs from Purple Rain? 

We expect The Time to play their hits from Purple Rain, particularly “The Bird” and “Jungle Love”. Cee Lo Green and Mark Ronson have something special in mind. In addition, Larry Graham and his band are preparing a five song tribute, all songs being from Prince’s back catalogue.

Are there many other Autism Rocks events in the pipeline? 

We are planning further events at Hammersmith Apollo at the end of September and December. We are in discussions with a number of artists.

How important is it to raise awareness of autism? 

Autism is widely misunderstood, and its frequency in the population isn’t well known. Current estimates are that 1 in 100 children are autistic. In my opinion, everyone knows someone who is autistic, therefore raising awareness is very important. For example, awareness will result in understanding why a small child is having a tantrum in a supermarket, or a teenager has no friends in high school.

What do you feel you have achieved so far with Autism Rocks? 

As well as having raised and donated large sums for research into autism, our aim is to raise awareness. It is difficult to measure how much awareness is out there, and how much is due to Autism Rocks, so we just keep on pushing ourselves.

Any special landmark moments since the charity started? 

Having Prince perform for us three times are all the landmarks we could wish for!

Autism Rocks presents 'A Tribute to Prince' at the Hammersmith Eventim Apollo on Friday June 24 and Saturday June 25. Tickets are still available and can be bought here.

Text ROCK20 £5 to 70070 to donate to Autism Rocks and make a difference today.

Watch Morris Day & The Time performances from Purple Rain and a promo for this weekend's Autism Rocks concerts below: