Gospel singer Pedro Henrique dying on stage sparks COVID conspiracy

The horrifying video of a young Brazilian gospel singer dying while performing on stage has reignited COVID-19 vaccine conspiracy theories across social media.

Pedro Henrique, 30, collapsed during a live performance of his song Vai Ser Tão Lindo at a religious event in Bahia, Brazil, on Wednesday. Video footage of the event shows Henrique singing along with the crowd before suddenly collapsing and falling on his back.

Henrique was taken to a nearby medical clinic, where he was pronounced dead.

His label, Todah Music, later announced that the singer had suffered a massive heart attack, the Daily Mail reported. The label commended Henrique’s “contagious joy” and “enchanting voice” in a tribute video posted on Instagram Thursday.

Newsweek reached out to his label on Thursday via email for comment.

The tragedy was met with unfounded claims that Henrique’s heart attack was caused by the COVID vaccine.

Claims that the COVID vaccines cause health problems or increase the chance of death are often made by groups opposed to vaccination. Other celebrity deaths sparking COVID vaccine conspiracy theories include those of actor Andre Braugher, who died on Tuesday after a recent diagnosis of lung cancer, his publicist confirmed to Variety, and Dominican professional basketball player Óscar Cabrera Adames, who died in June following an apparent heart attack.

“30-year-old singer Pedro Henrique just collapsed and died on stage. The new normal is not normal,” account End Wokeness posted on X, formerly Twitter. The post was met with several responses criticizing the government for mandating vaccines.

“Another jab did what it was intended to do,” one user responded to a post about the incident. “RIP and condolences to all the victims coerced into poisoning themselves under the guise of benefiting themselves and others – be it life long side effects or instant death.”

“Nothing to see here. It’s totally normal for young people to be dropping dead since the clot shots came out,” another user posted.

“There are no such things as coincidence’s [sic],” one posted while sharing the concert video. “Brazilian gospel singer 30 year old Pedro Henrique dies after collapsing from a heart attack during a live performance… This is a crime scene.”

The user also included a vaccine emoji in the post.

Another X account responded, warning against a rush to judgment.

“Before we jump to conclusions, it should be made public whether he was vaxxed or not,” the user posted after being unable to confirm if Henrique had received the COVID vaccine.

It is not clear if Henrique had been vaccinated. A chart by Statista shows that as of March 2023, 88 percent of the nation’s population had received at least one dose of the COVID inoculation, with nearly 82 percent being fully vaccinated.

COVID vaccines have faced debate in Brazil, specifically after São Paulo Governor João Dória declared that vaccination would be mandatory in his state in October 2020, according to a report by the National Library of Medicine.

The COVID inoculation will be “integral” to the Brazilian National Immunization Program in 2024, according to a report by Agencia Brazil, a national public news agency run by the Brazilian government.