NEW YORK, NY.- Rapper Fatman Scoop, whose hoarse and booming voice brought an electric energy to songs by Missy Elliott and Mariah Carey, and who performed the underground club favorite “Be Faithful,” died after collapsing onstage during a performance Friday. He was 56.
A statement from the rapper’s family posted to his Instagram account confirmed his death but did not provide a cause. The post described him as “the undisputed voice of the club” and as a performer with an infectious stage presence.
A video taken at the concert, at the Hamden Town Center Park in Hamden, Connecticut, appeared to show people performing CPR behind equipment on the stage.
Lauren Garrett, mayor of Hamden, said that paramedics had attempted lifesaving measures.
Fatman Scoop, whose birth name was Isaac Freeman III, rose to prominence and international recognition after the song “Be Faithful,” in which the rapper performs over beats by the Crooklyn Clan, became the No. 1 single on the U.K. Billboard singles chart in 2003, more than four years after the track’s initial release.
The song, which primarily samples “Love Like This” by Faith Evans, is a constant thrum of bass lines and lyrics from Fatman Scoop as he works to hype up a crowd.
“You got a $100 bill get your hands up; you got a $50 bill get your hands up” are the opening lines to the track that goes on to rhythmically instruct a crowd to make noise.
Questlove, drummer for the Roots and author of “Hip-Hop Is History” (2024), wrote his appreciation on social media for the song and Fatman Scoop: “I want to thank FATMAN SCOOP for being an embodiment of what hip-hop was truly about,” he wrote. “To just forget about your troubles and live in the moment and allow joy in.”
Fatman Scoop was born Aug. 6, 1968, grew up in the New York City neighborhood of Harlem, learning the art of hip-hop from his peers and those already making noise in the scene.
“I am a disciple of Doug E. Fresh,” Fatman Scoop said in a 2023 interview with Urban Politicians TV, speaking of the New York City rapper who is also known as the Human Beat Box. “He was the neighborhood star.”
“Everything that I learned, pretty much, I learned from Doug,” he added.
Fatman Scoop was formerly a DJ on Hot 97, an FM radio station in New York, which described him in an online tribute as a “legendary hype man and radio personality.” It said he helped usher a digital era for the station, bringing a video camera to what had been strictly a radio operation.
Complete information on survivors was not immediately available.
Missy Elliott recognized his impact in a tribute on social media Saturday, saying “Fatman Scoop VOICE & energy have contributed to MANY songs that made the people feel HAPPY & want to dance for over 2 decades.”
This article originally appeared in
The New York Times.
