Mikaben has died after collapsing on stage.
The ‘Fe Lapli’ hitmaker – whose real name was Michael Benjamin – left fans stunned after he fell to the ground as he left the stage at the Accor Arena in Paris, where he had appeared as a guest of music Carmini, and that It was later revealed that he had died at the age of 41.
The 20,000-capacity venue announced on Twitter on Sunday (16.10.22) that Mikaben – son of singer Lionel Benjamin – “died after suffering a seizure on stage and despite the efforts of emergency services”.
In video footage from the concert, singer Mickael Guirand announced to the crowd that the situation was “very complicated” as he pulled the plug on the show.
He said: “End of the concert. We have to evacuate the room.
“It is very complicated. We need prayers.”
Ariel Henry, the prime minister of his native Haiti, paid tribute to the singer.
He tweeted: “Shocked by the sudden death of the young and very talented artist Michael Benjamin ‘Mikaben’. We have lost an important figure in Haitian music.”
Jean Henry Ceant, the former prime minister of the island called Mikaben “one of the most talented artists of his generation”.
Wyclef Jean, who also hails from the Caribbean country, called him “one of the most influential and inspiring young artists of our generation” while speaking to the Miami Herald newspaper.
He added on Twitter that Mikaben was “gone too soon”.
Roberto Martino told the same newspaper of his “disbelief” about Mikaben’s death, as he had just spoken to him before going on stage.
He said, “I’m in disbelief.”
“This is someone I worked with for years and considered him a brother, a good friend. We talk almost every day. We have a chat together.”
“He was so happy. He couldn’t wait to get on that stage with CaRiMi. It was one of his biggest hits in life. It’s a band he idolized.”
In a special broadcast on Magik9, radio singer Tamara Suffren called his death “a blow to the country”, which has been hit by a wave of problems in recent years.
The ‘Ayti Se’ hitmaker – left behind his pregnant wife Vanessa.
She wrote: “I am in no condition to speak. I have lost my other half and I have no words.”