Marquay Collins, a Muscogee County, Georgia, resident who rose to prominence on TikTok with humorous videos – many of them about food and cars – died Wednesday (Nov 26). He was 24.
Muscogee County Coroner Buddy Bryan told WTVM in Columbus that emergency responders were called because Collins was having trouble breathing. When they arrived, they found the 24-year-old unconscious and unresponsive. Bryan did not provide additional information, and the cause of death remains under investigation.
According to WTVM, sources familiar with the situation said Collins had complained of head and neck pain in the days leading up to his death. In a Nov 8 video, Collins filmed the aftermath of a car accident he was involved in on a highway “in the middle of Atlanta.” Another vehicle, he said, rear-ended his car hard.
“My head is killing me … it’s throbbing so hard,” he said.
Collins began posting on TikTok in 2019, as a teenager. As of Nov 27 morning, his follower count on the popular video-sharing platform had passed the 7 million mark. Collins shared videos under the handle “marquaythegoat.”
The 24-year-old frequently featured his mother, Sonja Collins, in his posts.
On Nov 26, she said via Instagram that her son’s passing had left her heartbroken.
“My baby, my last one, my SnuggaBug, my Marquay is no longer here with me. He was the sweetest person he didn’t have a mean bone in his body. I needed him longer than God allowed me to have him,” she wrote, adding that the TikToker “spoiled” her and his father.
In a subsequent post the next morning, Sonja said that her heart will heal one day, “but I will still miss my son Marquay.” She ended her caption by wishing people a happy Thanksgiving.
Collins’ final upload to TikTok came on Nov 25, when he shared a humorous video about needing to apply lotion to his feet. The comment section was inundated with messages from followers expressing their shock and grief.
One wrote: “He posted 16 hours ago and now gone. Life can change in a split second. Rip young man.” – The Atlanta Journal-Constitution/Tribune News Service
