'I Like to Move It' DJ Erick Morillo has died aged 49

Erick Morillo, the DJ behind hit song ‘I Like To Move It’, has died aged 49, reports say.

No cause of death has yet been given for the Miami-based DJ, according to reports from TMZ and Miami’s Local 10. According to Local 10, Morillo was found dead in Miami Beach today (September 1).

Morillo was most famous for the 1994 track ‘I Like To Move It’, which he made under his Reel 2 Real moniker alongside vocalist The Mad Stuntman.

He then founded Subliminal Records in 1997, releasing his 2004 album ‘My World’, which featured P Diddy, on the label.

 

The report also states that Morillo was scheduled to appear in court on Friday (September 4) relating to a charge of sexual battery on a woman last December.

It’s reported that Morillo initially denied the accusation, but then turned himself in after his DNA was linked with the crime.

Fans and fellow artists have been paying tribute to Morillo on social media following the news of his death. “R.I.P Erick Morillo,” Camelphat wrote, while Italian DJ Joseph Capriati added: “Heartbreaking news. No words. Rest In Peace.”

“Awful to hear about Erick Morillo passing,” Gorgon City added. “Love to all his friends and family.”

Radio 1’s Danny Howard wrote: “Truly devastated. Erick was my hero, he was the reason I wanted to be a DJ and over the years he became a friend, one of the most genuine people I knew in the industry.”

Howard added: “He obviously had his demons & fought his battles over the years and god knows what he’s been going through over the last few weeks since the allegations but what ever he was accused of, whatever he is alleged to have done, this should not have been the end, I can’t believe it.”