It was a rude St. Valentine’s Day shock that reverberated across the country and beyond. Thousands of her fans, celebrities and Nigerians who knew her, took to the blogosphere on Thursday, February 14, to vent their anger, pain, disbelief and frustration at the reported and untimely death of former Big Brother Africa All Stars housemate and renowned Nigerian singer, Susan Oluwabimpe Harvey, popularly known as ‘Goldie.’
“It is with heavy heart that I have to inform you all that Goldie passed on, this night, shortly after arriving Lagos from Los Angeles, L.A. May her soul rest in the eternal peace of the Lord – Admin!!” was the news on her Twitter handle @GoldieHarvey. (Her last Twitter posts were a re-tweet and a reply to a fan who had wished her “Happy Val’s Day.” In response, she had written, “Same 2 u dear, (hugs)").
In spite of the confirmation on her Twitter handle and Facebook page, many of her fans still had hopes that it was yet another showbiz stunt from the pretty young lady who entertained the African continent with her performances at the last BBA house. All of such hopes were however dashed when Kennis Music, her label, released an official statement to authenticate the sad news. “With a deep sense of loss, we announce the shocking death of our darling music star, Goldie Harvey. Goldie, 31, died on Thursday, after complaining of severe headache shortly after her arrival from the United States, US, where she had gone to witness the Grammy Awards.
“She was rushed from her Park View, Ikoyi, Lagos, residence to Reddington Hospital, Victoria Island, Lagos (her official hospital), where doctors pronounced her dead on arrival, at exactly 7:30pm in the evening,” read the statement from Kenny Ogungbe, chief executive officer.
Goldie reportedly slumped a few hours after her arrival from Los Angeles, US, where she attended the 55th Grammy Awards ceremony. She was said to have died in the arms of a close friend and artiste, Denrele Edun. At the time of this report, an autopsy was yet to be conducted to confirm the cause of her death.
Shocked at the turn of events, celebrities took to the social media site Twitter, to express their grief. Kate Henshaw, actress, tweeted: “Just confirmed... Goldie...!!! Father pls may her soul rest in peace in ur arms… We mourn but we are not without hope that u know best...” Henshaw in her earlier tweets, like many others, had refused to accept the fact that Goldie was actually dead. “So sad hearing about Goldie... big dreams gone just like that? Go well dear... Let's celebrate her life #RIPGoldie,” wrote Darey Art-Alade, an artiste. While Banky W wrote, “My Goodness... I just heard some terrible news. RIP Goldie Harvey... Wow. Lord bless her soul & have mercy on us all.”
Equally devastated was Prezzo, Goldie’s housemate at the BBA Star Game 2012. The Kenyan rap artiste who made Goldie his love interest in the House actually composed a poem in which he said, “God saw you were getting tired and a cure was not meant to be. So He puts his arms around you and we saw you pass away. Although we love you deeply, we could not make you stay. Your golden heart stopped beating.”
A consummate performer, Goldie, who hailed from Ekiti State, was in the prime of her life, climbing up the rising peaks of a blossoming career in the entertainment and music industry. Recently, she and Denrele had announced that they would launch their joint television reality show “Tru Friendship,” in a few weeks. Many were already anticipating the release of three singles – Skibo, Miliki and Got to have it – from her forthcoming Africa Invasion album.
With her eccentric, lively personality, music style and creative video concepts, she had firmly established herself as a class act in the Nigerian music scene. Beyond that, Goldie further confirmed her star power status when she represented Nigeria in the BBA Star Game 2012 where she became a continental darling and controversial figure.
