Fatman Scoop, the American rapper best known for his 1999 hit ‘Be Faithful’ and his various collaborations with artists such as Missy Elliott and Mariah Carey, has died hours after collapsing during a concert in Hamden, Connecticut.
After collapsing in the middle of a concert on Friday, August 30, Scoop – whose real name was Isaac Freeman III – was rushed to hospital, but his life could not be saved.
Known for his spirited, guttural voice, honed at New York hip-hop parties where he served as a hype man, Fatman Scoop first became known to a mass audience with the re-release of ‘Be Faithful’ in 2003. That year, ‘Be Faithful’ reached number 1 as a single in the UK and Ireland, broke into the top 5 in Australia and Denmark and was also a hit in countries such as France and Germany, although not in Spain and, oddly, not in the United States.
‘Be Faithful’, a hip-hop club classic produced with the Crooklyn Clan, is famous for containing samples from up to 6 different songs, including ‘Love Like This’ (1998) by Faith Evans and ‘Can I Get A…’ (1998) by Jay-Z.
Aside from Be Faithful, Fatman Scoop was best known for his collaborations. Scoop was a guest artist on Missy Elliott’s biggest hit from 2005, Lose Control, which also featured Ciara, and he was also the featured rapper on Mariah Carey’s single from that same year, It’s Like That.
In recent weeks it has been revealed that Fatman Scoop will appear on A$AP Rocky’s new album, ‘Don’t Be Dumb’, alongside none other than Morrissey -among other artists- on a track called ‘Hood Happy’. The album, after being postponed, will be released this autumn.
