US musicians Diplo and T-Pain are among the stars to pay tribute to “inspiring” singer-songwriter Oliver Tree, who is believed to have died after two helicopters collided in Rio de Janeiro.
The 32-year-old, known for the track Miss You, was listed as being on board a helicopter that crashed over the Brazilian city on Sunday morning, according to the Associated Press (AP).
He was one of six people who were killed when the two helicopters collided over Rio de Janeiro and crashed in the city’s western zone, firefighters said.
Tributes have poured in for the musician including from DJ and record producer Diplo, who collaborated with him on song Ultraman – the theme for Netflix superhero film Ultraman: Rising.
The 47-year-old, real name Thomas Pentz Jr, hailed Tree as “witty as f***”, and “cooler than everyone” in a lengthy tribute to Instagram, which was accompanied by a carousel of images of the two together.
Diplo wrote: “He was like a brother I never had. If we weren’t always on the grind, traveling, learning, and trying to make the craziest music we’d ever heard, we probably would’ve spent more time together just because we were on the exact same wavelength.
“I don’t think we’ll ever have another human like this again. No rules. No apologies. He was 1000% himself and on a mission to add more joy to this music scene. I’ve never experienced anyone with this high a level of vibration.”
Diplo went on to say he had hoped the news of Tree’s death was “some elaborate, painstakingly insane way to drop a new song” and said: “It doesn’t feel real. Part of me still thinks I’m going to see him in a few weeks, exactly like always.
“What a f****** rockstar he was. I’m not gonna say I miss you yet, because somehow you’re still here. Still inspiring me right now.”
US singer T-Pain shared videos of Tree featuring on an episode of his Nappy Boy Radio podcast, and a clip of him speaking about “making music for me” instead of worrying about external pressures.
He wrote: “Never will forget this lesson from Oliver or the time we had on @NappyBoyRadioPodcast.
“Thanks for sharing your art and for always being different in the best way possible. See you on the brighter side.”
Other stars to pay tribute include Bebe Rexha, who wrote on X that she is “in shock” and “so sad”, as she remembered Tree as “passionate, talented and kind”.
US rapper Kid Cudi hailed Tree as a “really amazing and beautiful human” in a post to X reacting to the “heartbreaking” news, while YouTuber KSI said his death “still doesn’t feel real”.
The social media star, who collaborated with Tree on the song Voices, wrote: “Can’t believe I’m actually having to type this. You’re 32 man. You should still be here.
“You still had so much life to live. So much music to make. So much content to make.”
Jackass star Steve-O also paid tribute to the late singer in a post on Instagram and said he was “incredibly lucky” to have been his friend.
Recognisable by his signature bowl cut, Tree was known for his songs Life Goes On and When I’m Down.
He released his fourth studio album, Love You Madly, Hate You Badly in April and was only weeks into his World’s First World Tour – where he had planned to play shows on all seven continents.
Rio de Janeiro’s Military Fire Department said one of the helicopters crashed on a car dealership where several electric vehicles were parked, igniting a fire that was extinguished.
Police have said they have not been able to identify the bodies of those killed in the crash, but Tree was on the list of passengers handed to aviation authorities.
According to AP, content creator Gaspar Prim Diaz – also known as Gaspi – was also believed to have been in one of the helicopters.
Gaspi had more than 2.8 million followers on YouTube and was 23.
Officials said an investigation is under way to determine the cause of the collision.