Rapper Fatman Scoop died at the age of 53 on Friday night after collapsing amidst his performance during a free event in Connecticut at Hamden Town Center Park, CT Insider reported, citing his his tour manager.
The New York-born artist, whose real name is Isaac Freeman III, was performing at the “Green & Gold Party” in Hamden, when he experienced a “medical emergency.”
Social media footage showed the shirtless Scoop energising the throng at Town Center Park before collapsing and disappearing from view of the audience.
In the video footage obtained by several outlets, people could be seen conducting chest compressions behind the DJ set’s screen.
While his concert was scheduled to begin at 7:15 pm, authorities were summoned to the park at 8:33 pm, TMZ reported. He was taken to a nearby hospital after being carried off the stage on a stretcher.
Meanwhile, Hamden Mayor Lauren Garrett confirmed that Scoop was rushed to a hospital after he suffered a medical issue.
“Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers,” Garrett wrote on Facebook.
The rapper was supposed to perform at the event in July, but bad weather prompted the August rain date.
Scoop’s 1990s club hit “Be Faithful” is his most well-known work, which has received millions of views.
In October 2005, he made an appearance on Missy Elliott’s song “Lose Control,” which reached number three on the Billboard Hot 100.
He additionally worked with Timberland and Magoo, Nick Cannon, and Skrillex on songs, and he can also be heard on Mariah Carey’s Grammy-nominated song “It’s Like That.”
The official music video for Dyce Paso and Scoop’s new song, “Let It Go,” debuted on Friday morning.
Rapper Fatman Scoop dead: Tributes pour in
Freeman’s tour manager, DJ and producer Birch Michael, better known as Pure Cold, announced his passing on Facebook and Instagram early on Saturday.
“It is with the heaviest of hearts I announce the passing of Issac Freeman III, professionally known as Fatman Scoop,” Michael wrote.
“I am honestly lost for words … you took me all over the world and had me performing alongside you on some of the biggest and greatest stages on this planet, the things you taught me have truly made me the man I am today.”
UK’s Reminisce Festival, where Freeman was scheduled to perform on Sept. 7, also paid tribute to the rapper.
The event stated on their Instagram and Facebook handles that “his absence will be profoundly felt by everyone.”
They called him the “most popular performers” and a “cherished member of the Reminisce family.”
