Bruce Hampton died on stage during the final moments of a benefit concert honoring his 70th birthday at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta on Monday night.
Hampton celebrated his birthday with a concert at the Fox Theatre Monday night surrounded by dozens of musicians and singers on stage. The show was called Hampton 70: Celebration of Col. Bruce Hampton.
He collapsed over a speaker on stage as the band played ‘LoveLight’ and stayed there for several minutes before others on stage came to his rescue. Videos from the different angles of the concert show Hampton’s collapse and the reactions from the several people on stage.
His cause of death has not yet been determined.
Hampton is reportedly called the ‘Grandaddy of the Jam Scene’ and has been on the Rock scene since the 70’s. The proceeds from Monday night’s concert benefited the Fox Theatre Institute and other musician-focused charities, according to The Fox.
The Associated Press reports, The Tedeschi Trucks Band, also on the lineup, posted a statement on its official Facebook page from Hampton’s family saying he had died.
After Hampton collapsed, actor Billy Bob Thornton, who was on the bill with members of Widespread Panic, Phish and other musicians, took to the microphone to thank fans and say that they had to attend to something back stage.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tr2BZeBo2dE
