Haitian singer Michael Benjamin, affectionately known as Mikaben, has died at the age of 41 after collapsing on stage. Photo / Twitter
Popular Haitian singer Michael Benjamin, known by fans as Mikaben, has died on stage in front of a large crowd.
The 41-year-old was singing on stage in Paris with the Haitian konpa band CaRiMi when he collapsed.
The incident escalated when fellow performers could see something was wrong and stopped the show, telling fans to clear out.
Singer Mickael Guirand said: “End of the concert. We must evacuate the room.
“It’s very complicated. We need prayers.”
In footage posted online, Mikaben begins to walk backstage when he suddenly collapses to the ground.
He was reportedly given CPR but later died.
Mikaben was a respected singer, guitarist, composer, and producer whose hit song “Ayti Se” went global in the aftermath of Haiti’s devastating 2010 earthquake.
Mikaben has a daughter and another child on the way with his wife Vanessa Fanfan.
He also leaves behind a son from a previous relationship.
Rapper Wyclef Jean was one of many who is reeling from the news of Mikaben’s death.
“This is a shock,” Wyclef Jean told the Miami Herald.
“I’m in disbelief,” singer Roberto Martino told the outlet.
“This is somebody I was working with for years and considered a brother, a good friend. We talked almost every day. We have a chat together.”
Martino spoke to Mikaben right before he took the stage on Saturday night, he told the Miami Herald.
“He was so happy. He couldn’t wait to get on that stage with CaRiMi. It was one of his biggest accomplishments in life. It’s a band that he idolised,” Martino told the outlet.
“I’m at a lost for words. I’m broken.”
An official cause of death has not been revealed.
The director donned gumboots and a Russell Crowe T-shirt to get the festivities started.