Relatives and fans of American singer Oliver Tree, who died on June 14 in a plane crash in Brazil, said goodbye to him as part of a memorial ceremony in the city of Santa Cruz in California. The nearly three-hour event on Saturday, July 25 featured performances of the artist's songs, archived videos and speeches in Tri's memory.
The mood of the ceremony was set by the singer's mother, Christine Nickell, who remembered her son with pride, but not without a bit of humor. Standing with the rest of her family on the stage, in front of which were displayed three coffins containing the characters Tree had transformed into, she joked that he probably should have gotten help diagnosing his multiple personality disorder.
“We had the opportunity to listen to dozens of his songs before they ended up on albums. He insisted on full attention and set strict rules for listening. No talking, no phones – no distractions allowed. If the rules were broken, the music was turned off and Oliver had to face the wrath. Those in the know know that this was something to be afraid of,” Nickell said to laughter from the audience.
Nickell also revealed that Tri's signature blue-and-pink sports jacket was originally purchased by the musician's aunt in the 1980s before he was born. Subsequently, the item migrated to the future singer’s mother’s wardrobe, and then to his own.
Mother and son last communicated via video call shortly before the disaster – he jokingly smoked deliberately, although he promised to quit during the tour, and noted that he was going to fly by helicopter to a mountain in Brazil, where he would shoot videos for TikTok and compose music with friends. Tri, 32, and five others were killed when two helicopters collided in Rio de Janeiro.
As fans of the singer noted on the social network Reddit, the singer was presumably buried on the eve of the event. Judging by the photographs that appeared on the Internet, his grave is decorated in the architectural style of brutalism, which the artist liked.
“Oliver was buried, there was a farewell ceremony for him, and he didn’t run onto the stage shouting “Gotcha!” Damn, this really hurts,” said one fan of the performer, known for his dark humor and practical jokes.
