Rapper Fatman Scoop dies after collapsing on stage

NEW YORK

Fatman Scoop, who topped charts in Europe with “Be Faithful” two decades ago and later contributed to hits by other artists, died after collapsing on stage at a show on Aug. 30 in Connecticut. He was 53.

He was performing at Hamden Town Center Park when he collapsed Friday evening, town chief of staff Sean Grace said Saturday. Mayor Lauren Garrett posted on Facebook that he had a medical emergency. Concertgoers and paramedics tried to aid the artist, who was taken to a hospital, she wrote.

Scoop, born Isaac Freeman III, was from New York City’s Harlem neighborhood and broke out with 1999’s “Be Faithful.” What started as a minor success in the U.S. took off in Europe with a 2003 re-release, hitting No. 1 on the singles charts in the U.K. and Ireland.

The next year, he appeared on the U.K. television series “Chancers,” in which musicians mentored artists who wanted to make it in the U.S., the BBC reported. He also was a contestant on “Celebrity Big Brother 16: UK vs USA,” which was filmed in the U.K. and aired in 2015.

But Scoop was perhaps best known for his feature role on Missy Elliott’s “Lose Control,” a 2005 song of the summer that also featured Ciara. The track won a short-form music video Grammy at the 2006 award show.

The same year as “Lose Control,” he was featured on Mariah Carey’s “It’s Like That.” He also was featured on tracks from Timbaland, David Guetta, The Situation and Skrillex, among other artists. In 2018, he reunited with Elliott and Ciara for a remix of the latter’s “Level Up.”