Six Dead in Brazil Helicopter Crash; Musician Oliver Tree Among Victims
Six people died when two helicopters collided mid-air in Rio de Janeiro. Among the victims is American musician Oliver Tree, who had nearly 20 million social media followers.
Rio de Janeiro police confirmed that six people died in a helicopter crash on Sunday morning. Five of the victims were in one helicopter, while the second aircraft carried only the pilot, who also perished. The two helicopters collided mid-air and fell into an electric car parking lot in the southwestern part of the city, igniting at least 20 vehicles.
Among the deceased was American musician Oliver Tree (full name Oliver Tree Nickell), who has nearly 20 million followers on social media. He was on a world tour and had performed a concert in São Paulo on June 6. His next scheduled show was to be on July 13 in Lisbon, Portugal – his first European leg performance.
Oliver Tree was known for his eccentric, ironic style in both music and visual presentation. He directed his own music videos and often performed stunts. He gained significant popularity on TikTok, while his musical breakthrough came with the albums “Ugly Is Beautiful” (2020) and “Cowboy Tears” (2022).
In the Baltic region, the musician had a controversial reputation after performing at the “Park Live” festival in Kazakhstan in the summer of 2024, sponsored by the Russian company Yandex. As a result, his concert in Vilnius was canceled.
An investigation into the accident is currently underway to determine the exact cause of the mid-air collision.
