Christina Grimmie dead: Selena Gomez reportedly cancels meet and greet after The Voice singer's shooting
Gomez was the singer's mentor and the two often performed on stage together
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Your support makes all the difference.Selena Gomez reportedly cancelled her meet and greet for fans at her Saturday night show in Miami.
The 23-year-old actress and singer, who is a former Disney star, announced the news just hours after her friend Christina Grimmie was shot dead by a gunman at a concert venue in Orlando, Florida.
Grimmie, 22, who was a contestant on The Voice, was signing autographs for fans when an assailant opened fire on her and then shot himself. She was immediately transported to a local hospital where she died from injuries.
Gomez confirmed the cancellation to E! News and paid tribute to the late singer during a concert at American Airlines Arena in Miami on Saturday night.
“I think it's not about a religion and it's not about good deeds,” Gomez told concert-goers. “I think she just had faith and I don't really understand how this really happened, but I would like to dedicate this song to her.”
Gomez then performed her song 'Transfiguration' in tribute to Grimmie.
Selena first met Grimmie after her stepfather, Brian Teefey, discovered the singer on YouTube. Gomez became her mentor and the pair performed on tour together a number of times, with Grimmie singing back-up vocals for her and opening on stage for Gomez.
Gomez shared a photo of the pair, with the caption, “My heart is absolutely broken. I miss you Christina.”
She also shared a message her stepfather had written on Grimmie’s GoFundMe page which he created in order to help raise money for her family.
“Words cannot begin to describe the pain I am feeling,” Teefy wrote. “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,” he added.
Her killer, Kevin James Loibl is from St Petersburg, Florida and travelled across the state to target Grimmie, according to Orlando Police. Loibl had been carrying two guns, two loaded magazines and a hunting knife on his person during the shooting,
Grimmie attracted a following of millions after uploading her performances to her YouTube channel at the age of 15. Following this, she appeared on The Voice's sixth season in 2014 and more recently started performing with punk rock band Before You Exit. Tributes for the singer have poured in from around the world since the news of her tragic death.
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