Oliver Tree’s family is sharing his touching obituary and information about his celebration of life after the singer died at age 32 in a helicopter crash.
“A celebration of his life/ memorial service will be held at the UCSC Quarry Amphitheater on July 25th,” Tree’s family wrote in a statement shared via the late artist’s official Instagram page on Friday, June 26. “Due to limited space for family and friends, this event will also be streamed live.”
The statement continued, “The family requests donations be made to “Dr. Oliver Tree’s Extremely Epic Art Grant for Baby Geniuses.” The non-profit was founded by the performance artist, who had a “vision” to “support and encourage young artists to follow their dreams.”
Tree, full name Oliver Tree Nickell, died in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil, on June 14 after two helicopters collided mid-air. The “Life Goes On” singer had performed in São Paulo prior to his death as part of his seven continent world tour. All six people on board the two aircrafts — five in one helicopter and a pilot in the other — perished in the crash.
In addition to sharing memorial service information to Tree’s countless fans, the family also shared the singer’s touching obituary, covering his prolific life from his birth in Santa Cruz, California, to his success as a recording artist, producer, filmmaker and more.
“Oliver had a deep curiosity about the world and wanted to experience every country and culture. Over the past two years, Oliver was a global citizen, visiting over 100 countries: eating local cuisine; connecting with locals of all kinds; participating in ceremonies; giving concerts; and recording music on his laptop,” his obituary read in part. “He went to the Middle East, sailed in Antarctica and became an honorary Maasai tribal chief in Tanzania.”
The post continued, “Oliver was more than a musician; he was a true artist in every sense of the word, seeing the world as a stage for his performance art. He pushed boundaries in every form of media and life. Oliver was on a mission to bring the world together through art and inspiring other artists to create. Being a forward thinker, Oliver created a non-profit entitled ‘Dr. Oliver Tree’s Extremely Epic Art Grant for Baby Geniuses.’ He wanted all of his money to go into funding other aspiring artists in all facets: music, film, installation and performance art projects.”
The late singer’s obituary also highlighted his goal of “spreading art, joy, laughter and love into the world,” pinpointing the singer’s unique ability to blend his performance art with his own identity.
“He blended his characters seamlessly with his authentic self, which left the audience often wondering what is real or a prank,” the obituary continued. “He found beauty in the ordinary and would constantly preach his ‘Ugly is Beautiful’ mantra on and off stage. He wanted everyone to feel like they had a place to be themselves. Under all the absurdist humor and outlandish stunts, he wanted to create an inclusive environment where everyone belonged and could realize their true potential.”
The family chose to end the singer’s obituary with his signature mantra.
“Oliver was a creative force of nature, a true ‘Alien Boy’ among human beings. His imagination was boundless, his laugh was contagious and his creativity and ideas were prolific,” the obituary concluded. “We’ve leave you with a quote which Oliver said at almost every show he proffered at, his mantra to the world: ‘No matter how strange you think you look, no matter how ugly you feel, you are beautiful.’”
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.usmagazine.com ’
