FatMan Scoop, the Grammy-winning DJ and hypeman who got fans roaring whether he was performing at a Clippers game or taking the stage at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, died Friday, his family said.
The performer, born Isaac Freeman, appears in social media videos collapsing Friday night onstage in Hamden, Conn. The town’s mayor, Lauren Garrett, said audience members and paramedics at Town Center Park attempted “life-saving assistance” to no avail.
On Saturday morning, the Freeman family posted a note to fans on Scoop’s Instagram page that said in part, “Last night the world lost a radiant soul.”
The message added: “His music made us dance and embrace life with positivity. His joy was infectious and the generosity he extended to all will be deeply missed but never forgotten.” The post also noted the loss of Scoop as a “father, brother, uncle and a friend.”
Immediately following the family’s message, tributes poured in from social media accounts from the likes of Missy Elliott and Chuck D, who wrote, “great human being.”
Scoop’s Grammy came at the awards held in 2006. He won in the short form music video category for “Lose Control.”