Oliver Tree Dies at 32 in Rio Helicopter Crash

Oliver Tree, the California-born singer-songwriter whose bowl cut, retro fashion and irresistibly eccentric pop made him one of the most distinctive voices of his generation, has died aged 32 following a mid-air helicopter collision over Rio de Janeiro. The crash, which occurred on Sunday morning in the city's western zone, killed all six people aboard the two aircraft, Brazilian firefighters confirmed.

Tree had been in Brazil as part of his headlining world tour supporting his fourth studio album, Love You Madly, Hate You Badly — an entirely self-produced record that had been generating considerable buzz ahead of planned stops across China, Japan, New Zealand, Antarctica and South Africa. He had performed in Buenos Aires as recently as 4 June and, just the day before his death, posted a video to his Instagram showing him playing football in a Brazilian neighbourhood. It was the last content he would ever share.

Brazilian police confirmed that Tree was listed as a passenger on one of the helicopters. Officials have stated that identifying the six victims has proven difficult, and an investigation into the cause of the collision is ongoing. Argentine content creator Gaspar Prim Díaz — known online as Gaspi and a YouTube star with more than 2.8 million subscribers — was also reported to have been aboard one of the aircraft. He was just 23 years old.

Witnesses near the crash site described scenes of chaos. One of the helicopters came down on the car park of a local dealership, where a fire broke out among the electric vehicles parked below before emergency crews extinguished the blaze. A tyre repair worker at the scene, Fernandes de Freitas, said he watched one helicopter catch fire in the air.

Argentine streaming channel Blender, which had worked with Gaspi, paid tribute on social media. "Thanks for your art, your magic and your sensibility," the channel wrote. "Every one of us will miss you."

Tree's journey to international recognition was anything but conventional. He spent his early career producing dubstep and performing in the San Francisco Bay Area simply as "Tree", releasing his debut EP Demons in 2013 under R&S Records. His profile shifted significantly in 2016 when producer Whethan released "When I'm Down" featuring Tree's unmistakable vocals — a poppy, breakout moment that caught the attention of Atlantic Records, who signed him shortly afterwards.

It was the 2018 EP Alien Boy that truly announced him to the wider world. The double music video for "All That x Alien Boy", which Tree wrote and directed himself, racked up more than 50 million views and introduced his gloriously odd, '80s-inflected aesthetic to mainstream audiences. He became a natural fit for the music and internet culture of the early 2020s, amassing 15.4 million followers on TikTok alone. His single "Life Goes On" went viral in 2021 and has since been used in over 3.7 million TikTok videos, while fan favourite "Miss You" clocked up 1.5 million uses on the platform.

Tributes have begun pouring in from those who knew him best. Singer-songwriter Melanie Martinez, who previously dated Tree, wrote a heartfelt remembrance on Instagram hours after the news broke.

She added that she would be left "wondering what stunt and creative project" he was "scheming up in heaven" — a tribute that captured perfectly the restless, playful energy that had defined everything Tree created.

Tree's representatives had not responded to press requests for comment at the time of publication. The entertainment and celebrity world is in shock at the loss of a figure who seemed to be only just hitting his stride — a singular artist, mid-tour, mid-idea, gone far too soon.