American singer Oliver Tree identified as victim in horrific helicopter collision as harrowing video of smoldering debris emerges

American singer Oliver Tree has been identified as one of the passengers in a fatal mid-air helicopter collision that killed at least six people. 

The crash occurred in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, on Sunday morning. The helicopters crashed into the parking lot of an electric car dealership, igniting a fire that engulfed at least 20 vehicles.

Firefighters said that initial reports pointed to a mid-air collision, adding ‘six fatalities have been confirmed, all were crew members of the aircraft involved in the accident.’

Rio de Janeiro Mayor Eduardo Cavaliere initially said that there were ‘foreign nationals on board one of the aircraft,’ without giving further details.

CNN soon reported that Oliver Tree, the 32-year-old singer best known for the hit song Life Goes On, was among the victims. 

The other victims have been identified as Gaspar Prim, who is also known as Argentinian YouTuber Gaspi, Lucas Vignale, Lucas Brito Chaves, and pilots Alexandre Souza and Charles Marsillac.

Gaspi was just 23 years old and a highly popular content creator in his country. He had nearly three million subscribers on YouTube, where his videos collectively garnered tens of millions of views.

New dramatic photos and videos have emerged showing the aftermath of the crash, with the mangled helicopters lying over smashed cars and burnt-out vehicles in the electric car dealership’s parking lot.

American singer Oliver Tree has been identified as one of the victims in a mid-air helicopter crash that killed at least six people in Brazil

Argentinian YouTuber Gaspi (pictured, left) was one of the other victims identified in the fatal crash. He had nearly three million subscribers on YouTube

Dramatic videos and photos show the aftermath of the crash

Burnt-out vehicles in the parking lot of the electric car dealership are pictured

Fire services spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Fabio Contreiras told CNN Brasil at the scene that it was unclear exactly how the accident unfolded.

‘Parts of the aircraft are scattered hundreds of meters away, so the information we have is still very preliminary.

‘We really need to get the recordings and videos to understand exactly what happened,’ he said.

Contreiras said rescue workers had discovered one helicopter in flames among the electric cars, with five victims inside.

A second helicopter found around 330ft away was carrying only the pilot, who also died. The accident took place in the suburb of Recreio dos Bandeirantes.

Images in local media showed a thick plume of black smoke rising from the car dealership, where several vehicles were on fire.

Contreiras said the fact that the aircraft had crashed in the parking area had prevented a higher death toll.

‘Given the surrounding residences, the accident could have been far more tragic,’ he said.

Tree was best known for his viral songs that were popular on social media and his eccentric outfits and hairstyles

Two people are pictured standing next to the wreckage of one of the crashed helicopters 

Oliver Tree was a California native born in Santa Cruz. His music was highly popular on social media, and he was known for his eccentric outfits and hairstyles. 

He signed to Atlantic Records in 2017 after his song When I’m Down went viral, and he released his first studio album, Ugly is Beautiful, in July of 2020. 

Tree published three more studio albums since then, with his fourth, Love You Madly Hate You Badly, recently being released on April 24, 2026. The album was entirely self-produced.

Tree’s music videos have collectively garnered more than a billion views just on YouTube. His two most popular songs on the platform, Life Goes On and Miss You, earned 464 million views and 382 million views, respectively.

Life Goes On was used in more than 3.7 million TikTok videos, and Miss You was used in around 1.5 million videos on the platform, making his music ubiquitous, even among those who did not know of the artist. 

Less than 24 hours ago, Tree posted a video to his Instagram from Rio de Janeiro that he made with Brazilian content creator Iae Break. He captioned the post, ‘American for the 1st time in Brazil.’ 

On Sunday afternoon, Break posted a series of photos of himself with Tree and wrote in Portuguese, ‘I can’t believe you guys are gone.’

Tributes from other celebrities have also started pouring in on social media. 

Tributes from celebrities have started pouring in on social media. YouTuber and musician KSI shared this tweet

Hit rapper Lil Yachty shared this Instagram story paying tribute to Tree

‘Can’t believe I’m actually having to type this. You’re 32 man. You should still be here. You still had so much life to live. So much music to make,’ a tweet from YouTuber and musician Olajide Olayinka Williams Olatunji, known online as KSI, began. 

‘So much content to make. You’re a legend and will always be a legend. Still doesn’t feel real. Genuinely feel sick. I love you bro,’ KSI concluded. His post included several photos of the two together.

Hit rapper Lil Yachty, whose real name is Miles Parks McCollum, posted an Instagram story with a picture of himself with Tree and wrote: ‘Man, rest in peace friend.’

Tree was in the midst of a world tour promoting his most recent studio album. The tour began in Mexico City on May 30 and was slated to have stops in China, Japan, Antarctica, New Zealand and South Africa.