Stockholm church bells play "Wake me up" in Avicii tribute
STOCKHOLM (Reuters) - Church bells played one of Avicii’s biggest hits in the Swedish capital Stockholm on Tuesday, paying tribute to the DJ and record producer who was found dead last week.
FILE PHOTO: Hundreds of fans of Avicii gather to honour him at Sergels Torg in central Stockholm, Sweden April 21, 2018. Fredrik Persson/TT News Agency/via REUTERS
The song “Wake me up” rang out from the 80-metre-high tower of Oscar’s Church in central Stockholm, where Avicii, whose real name is Tim Bergling, grew up.
One of the biggest stars of electronic dance music (EDM), Avicii was found dead at the age of 28 in Muscat, Oman, his U.S. publicist said on Friday. No cause of death was given.
The church will have its bells play the song at noon from Monday to Friday this week, it said on its web page, adding “Rest in peace”.
Avicii, also known for international hits like “Hey Brother” and “Waiting for love”, announced in 2016 that he was retiring from touring, but he kept making music and was nominated for a Billboard music award last week.
The family of the artist on Monday said they were grateful for the numerous public tributes paid, but offered no details on his unexpected death.
Swedish prime minister Stefan Lofven called Avicii “one of Sweden’s biggest musical wonders of modern time” on Instagram.
Stockholm resident Jon Holmgren said Avicii had meant very much to him, as his son was the same age and in the same group of friends as the artist when he grew up.
“He is a fantastic success story with a very tragic ending, unfortunately,” he said, standing outside Oscar’s Church.