'FIGHTING EVERY DAY'
YouTube star Brittanya Karma, 29, dies of Covid in agonising pain days after flashing victory sign from her hospital bed
Felix Allen
Dec 2 2020, 11:47 ET
Updated: Dec 2 2020, 11:54 ET
A YOUTUBE star has died from Covid aged just 29 - days after she flashed fans a victory sign from her hospital bed.
Brittanya Karma had posted the photo on Instagram while hooked up to a ventilator in Hamburg and said: "I'm still fighting every day."
Brittanya Karma has died in hospital days after posting this final Instagram photoCredit: Instagram
She told her 295k followers she was in 'so much pain' and warned them to take coronavirus seriouslyCredit: Instagram
The German-Vietnamese rapper and reality star died after around three weeks battling coronavirus, her fiance confirmed.
They had been planning their wedding before she fell ill last month.
On November 17, she revealed she was in hospital as she shared a selfie in an oxygen mask with her 295,000 Instagram followers.
She said she had been unable to eat or sleep for five days and said: "I've been in so much pain.
"Corona should be taken more seriously. Please take care of yourselves.
"I know God did not make me the most beautiful or smartest woman in the world, but one of the strongest who has made everyone in the world laugh so far. I will get through this with God's help."
Brittanya Karma won an army of fans on YouTube and InstagramCredit: Instagram
The German-Vietnamese rapper and vlogger was known as The Confidence QueenCredit: Instagram
Her last post was on November 20 when she held up two fingers in a victory salute from her intensive care bed.
She told fans: "I'm still fighting every day."
Her brother Thai Lam paid tribute after she lost her fight for life on Monday.
He said on Instagram: "I have no words. Life is unfair. Growing up with you was so much fun.
"You taught me so much in life. Life is precious. See you one day."
Grief-stricken fiance Manuel Anderson - who proposed only months ago - changed his Facebook profile to a plain black circle.
Brittanya - real name Nguyen Tran Phuong Linh - had more than 250,000 subscribers to her YouTube channel.
She won an army of fans for quirky posts on daily life in Germany before bravely tackling serious issues such as body shaming and the unreality of social media.
It earned her the nickname "The Confidence Queen".
In 2018, she was a contestant on Vietnamese TV dating show The Bachelor, saying she wanted to draw attention to false ideals of beauty.
Later that year she made her chart debut in Vietnam with a hit rap single called Tự Tin, which means Confident.
"Through the song, I want to message everyone that just love yourself and be proud of whatever you're having", she said in an interview.
"Millions of people in the world are victims of judgments just because they are different: being short, fat, skinny, gay, lesbian, transgender, flaws on their body, etc.
"I wanted you to turn these 'flaws' into your own attractiveness. Don't let them take your confidence away".
Last year she said in another interview with a Canadian magazine: "Every person in this world is unique.
"Stop judging others and talking badly about them. Eat what you like and do what you want to do."
Germany, praised for its initial handling of the pandemic, has seen a deadly second wave that experts say could lead to five months of lockdowns.
Brittanya launched a rap music career in Vietnam, where her parents were fromCredit: Instagram
She spread a message of body positivity and campaigned against false social media normsCredit: Instagram