Two years ago, on the sixth season of "The Voice," many cheered on 20-year-old Christina Grimmie as she rocked the house with her blind audition with the song “Wrecking Ball” by Miley Cyrus.
Not only did she earn four chair-spins but she also received a standing ovation from Adam Levine (who soon became her coach) and Usher. She was called “phenomenal” and “engaging and passionate.” Levine also commented that she seemed even more comfortable onstage than himself!
Before many knew her as the girl who took the show with the surprising performance of Drake’s “Hold On, We’re Going Home,” Christina Grimmie also touched hearts from her YouTube channel (zeldaxlove64 Christina Grimmie) on which she uploaded many covers.
Joined on Feb. 9, 2009, her bio reads:
“As you can probably tell i love singing, writing songs, writing music and i play piano and a little drums & guitar! Check out my videos! Me Singing is where I cover songs I love! Above All That Is Random is an auto-tuned blast I make with Sarah! For the record guys, i PLAY THE PIANO in every one of my videos, i dont like instrumentals on the computer, i like originals by me :) it feels more original too. In case you didn't know already im obsessed with Zelda! Ocarina of Time is the best Zelda game out there, although there are ALOT !! Im a full on Christian, by the way. Jesus is my Savior and i looove Him and sing for Him.
-Christina Grimmie- Subscribe for more!”
Many subscribers sent private messages to Grimmie praising her on her talent and confessing their love for her. Among these dedicated fans was Halie Weaving, a fellow student I met this year at Concordia College.
When she was 11 years old, Halie was told by a choir director that she did not have a good singing voice. This discouraged her, as it would anyone, and she began to lose interest in singing because why do something when you're told by a superior that you cannot do it? Halle found Grimmie on YouTube and fell in love with her love for video games and her unique style that stole all of our hearts. Halie sent Grimmie a message asking for advice on how to regain her courage, to which she got the following response: "You sing for you because if you can do that, you can sing to the world." Halle has lived by these words ever since.
On Friday, June 10, 2016, Grimmie played a show at The Plaza Live theatre and signed autographs for fans after. A man approached her and opened fire, police spokeswoman Wanda Miglio said. The 22-year-old singer’s brother, Marcus Grimmie, tackled the gunman. In the midst of the tousle, it is reported that the man took the gun to himself and took his own life. There were about 120 people at the venue at the time of attack; Marcus had saved many other lives with his quick actions. His sister was rushed to the hospital shortly after, but sadly, that is where Christina Grimmie passed away.
As of Saturday, June 11, 2016, Orlando police have identified the gunman as Kevin James Loibi, 27, of St. Petersburg, Fla. It has been reported that Loibi had every intention to drive to Orlando to kill the singer and return to where he came from; unfortunately, there have been no signs of a possible motive, or a link connecting the singer to the murderer.
It is also unclear how Loibi was able to get a gun into the venue, or whether or not he was just a crazy fan the followed the singer on Twitter; it is still too soon to get all of the answers, no matter how badly we all demand them.
Brian Teefey of LH7 Management created a Go Fund Me page to support the Grimmie family in this tragic time. He states in the description that he looked at Grimmie as a second daughter, and wanted to assist her in achieving her musical dreams. Like all of us fans, Brian was also horrified when he found out about this tragedy and wants the family to worry about nothing but recovery at this point in time.
Christina Grimmie, you were unbelievably talented and your name will never be forgotten. Saying you will be missed is an understatement.
