After the tragic shooting of vocalist Christina Grimmie by one Kevin James Loibl, 27, of St. Petersburg, Florida, her friends and associates within the music industry have already begun to come out in support of her family.
Dirty South took to Twitter several hours ago to offer his condolences and respect. Having worked with her in the studio only days ago, the impact of her death on him was especially palpable.
RIP Christina Grimmie…a beautiful soul she was. We worked in studio only few days ago and she was one of the nicest ever!! Gone too soon 🙏
— Dirty South (@dirtysouth) June 11, 2016
Brian Teefey, Grimmie’s manager and stepfather of Selena Gomez, released a statement of his own, referring to Grimmie as a second daughter to him.
“Words cannot begin to describe the pain I am feeling. I learned this business through the eyes of a father and Christina was like a second daughter to me. All I wanted to do was assist her in achieving her musical dreams while protecting her from the pitfalls associated with the business. I never could have imagined this horrific event being one of the pitfalls needing to be avoided.”
In response to the incident, Teefey created a GoFundMe account to assist Grimmie’s family. So far, it has already accumulated nearly $30,000 more than the intended amount.
Grimmie had performed as a backup singer for Gomez, becoming her friend while on the road. Gomez took to Twitter earlier this morning to express her own remorse.
My heart is absolutely broken. I miss you Christina pic.twitter.com/KWGwZZlj4t
— Selena Gomez (@selenagomez) June 11, 2016
To make a donation to the account, visit the GoFundMe page here. In the meantime, listen below to Christina’s incredible & viral cover of David Guetta & Sia‘s “Titanium.”