DJ Hazel, a popular Polish musician, has been found dead aged 44.
The body of the artist born Michael Orzechowski was reportedly discovered in a car parked near Skępe, Lipno County, in Poland on Wednesday 7 May.
According to reports by TVP3 Bydgoszcz, a regional branch of Poland’s public broadcaster, a police investigation has been launched given the unclear circumstances surrounding Orzechowski’s death.
Born in Warsaw, Orzechowski launched his career in the Nineties and became a key figure in Poland’s electronic music scene.
He collaborated with a number of Polish artists and performed at hundreds of clubs around Europe, developing a reputation for his techno, progressive house, trance and hardstyle music.
News of his death has since been confirmed on DJ Hazel’s Instagram page by his fiancée, Zosia Zosiunia, who told his followers that music was what brought them together.
“My sweet friend,” she wrote in Polish in the caption of photos of the couple. “My sweet fiancé, my partner in crime. No one and nothing is and will ever be able to replace you.”
She continued: “In one second you made my heart beat faster after years and in one second it was shattered into a million pieces that could never be put back together.
“I don’t say goodbye to you, my dear Bear, you just wait for me.”
The couple got engaged last year, after Orzechowski organised an elaborate proposal on the beach at sunset in the city of Kołobrzeg.
On social media, tributes have begun pouring in for the late musician, including from fellow Polish DJ Pawbeats, who wrote on Facebook: “DJ Hazel is dead, I can’t believe it. Michał was one of the first who wasn’t afraid of totally ‘unacceptable’ combinations for those times, like playing ‘Weź piórkę’ with Pawbeats Orchestra at Przystanek Woodstock.”
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“My heart breaks,” he added.
Also posting on Facebook, DJ C-Bool wrote: “Michael … DJ Hazel I can’t believe this… why? So long, my friend… Farewell Legend! I’ll remember you in this picture. Condolences to all the family.”