‘Lilith Fair’ Director Ally Pankiw Claims Prince ‘Begged’ to Perform at Festival

For Ally Pankiw, the passion for directing a documentary on Lilith Fair — the groundbreaking all-female music festival helmed by Sarah McLachlan — was personal.

“What I was taught about Lilith as a young woman was a very watered-down, trivialized version of it,” she tells PEOPLE. “So I think I had a lot of resentment that what I was taught about it was not the true story, if that makes sense — and I wanted to correct that.”

In Lilith Fair: Building a Mystery – The Untold Story, which was released is on Hulu and Hulu on Disney+ on Sunday, Sept. 21, the I Used to Be Funny director, details the untold story of Lilith Fair.

“I just felt connected to the story and that idea that you’re looked at as a risk by a lot of people in charge in this industry and not as an opportunity, and then Sarah defying those odds just felt weirdly personal to me,” Pankiw, 38, tells PEOPLE.

In making the documentary, Pankiw also found herself learning new information about Lilith Fair — like the time Prince performed “Every Day Is a Winding Road” with Sheryl Crow in Toronto in 1999.

Before his surprise appearance, the Purple One had “begged” to be a part of it “year after year.” But he was constantly turned down.

“He had really outsized requests,” says Pankiw. “And Lilith was very equitable. Everyone had the same size dressing room, and no one had this crazy rider.”

She added, “Everyone got the same amount of stage time and things were very collaborative and equal, and his demands didn’t match that.”

When he finally performed with Crow, now 63, Pankiw claims he gave up those demands.

“He was like, ‘Fine, I won’t need any of that. I just want to come play Lilith,’ I think that was surprising, just how mainstream and cool it was, and that people who actually worked in music understood its value and how cool the performers and the artists were there.

Lilith Fair: Building a Mystery – The Untold Story features interviews from original Lilith Fair artists, including Crow, Bonnie Raitt, Erykah Badu, Paula Cole, Jewel, Mýa, Natalie Merchant, Indigo Girls, and Emmylou Harris, as well as contemporary artists like Brandi Carlile and Olivia Rodrigo, who have been inspired by them.

Lilith Fair: Building a Mystery – The Untold Story is out now.