Brooklyn-born American musician, singer and songwriter Lewis Allan "Lou" Reed died just a few days ago on October 27 at the age of 71. In a strange turn of events, a famous Latin pop  and Mambo singer was said to have died instead. Lou Bega, his friends and his family received condolences, having been mistaken for the deceased rock legend.

Both men are Grammy award-winning musicians who gained great acclaim for their contributions to the American music scene. That, in addition to their surnames seems to be the extent of their similarities.  

Reed was the principal vocalist and songwriter for the Velvet Underground, and he had a thriving career as an independent artist, and was active in the music arena from 1964 until his untimely death. As well as being a musician, he was also a talented photographer, and appeared in a number of films.

Reed battled liver disease, and underwent a liver transplant in May of this year and reported feeling "stronger." Nonetheless, the disease claimed his life. News of his death brought tributes from Morrissey, David Bowie, Miley Cyrus, Lenny Kravitz, Rickey Gervais and many more, including Pearl Jam, who dedicated their song "Man of the Hour" to him and then covered Velvet Underground's "I'm Waiting for the Man."

German-Ugandan-Italian, Bega, (born David Lubega) is best known for his hit single "Mambo No. 5 (A Little Bit of)." Bega began his career as a rapper, one-third of a rap trio who released their first CD in 1990.

In 1999, Bega released "Mambo No. 5" as his first single as an independent artist. The song charted No.1 in most of Europe, and it spent twenty weeks at No. 1 in France. His singles that followed, "I Got a Girl," "Tricky,Tricky," and "Mambo Mambo" charted well also. He has produced five studio albums, including "A Little of 80's," which was released this year.  

Bega remarked on his Facebook wall that Reed was a "genius" and blamed the confusion on a journalist.

He wrote: "R.I.P Lou Reed the Genius who took Walks on the Wild side. PS: I have been receiving tons of condolences because of a journalist confusing our identities. Lou Bega sends his condolences to Mr Reed's Family."