Police seek motive for killing of 'The Voice' singer

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Christina Grimmie was a vivacious, outgoing singer whose career was born on social media and propelled toward the big time by television.

She didn't consider herself a famous person -- not like the judges on "The Voice," where she competed -- but she had a following that was as enthusiastic about her music as she was.

Kevin Loibl wasn't like her. While she was a YouTube star, he seemed to be a shadow of Grimmie's online presence. He left little trace online.

The two apparently had no personal connection to one another until Friday night, when police said Loibl traveled 100 miles from his home in St. Petersburg to an Orlando concert venue. There, he shot Grimmie as she was signing autographs for fans after performing. He fatally shot himself after being tackled by Grimmie's brother, Marcus.

Grimmie died several hours later early Saturday. Millions of people, far more than those who loved her for her music, were shocked and saddened by her death.

Kevin Loibl

"She was doing a meet-and-greet, just signing autographs and selling merchandise. This white male approached her and opened fire, striking her," Orlando Police Chief John Mina said Saturday at a news conference. "There is no indication that he knew her. We're looking into that to try to find a motive for the crime."

Grimmie, 22, isn't the only person in the entertainment industry to have been killed by a stranger. Preceding her were John Lennon, designer Gianni Versace and 1980s sitcom star Rebecca Shaeffer.

"Christina was a natural, gifted talent that comes along so rarely," wrote singer Adam Levine, who was Grimmie's mentor on "The Voice." "She was taken from us too soon."

Grimmie was most widely known from those TV appearances two years ago, when she rocked listeners with her renditions of songs including "Wrecking Ball" and "Can't Help Falling in Love" and finished third.

"The Voice" paid tribute Saturday to Grimmie on its official Twitter page: "There are no words. We lost a beautiful soul with an amazing voice."

Grimmie first gained attention seven years ago when she posted online a video of herself playing piano and singing "Don't Wanna Be Torn" by Miley Cyrus as television alter ego Hannah Montana.

In 2011, Entertainment Weekly crowned her "the veritable queen of YouTube musicians," already with nearly 1 million subscribers (she has 3.2 million now), an EP of original songs (titled "Find Me"), a single ("Advice") that was getting airplay on Radio Disney and an opening spot touring with Selena Gomez.

Detectives were searching Loibl's cellphone and social-media accounts looking for clues as to a motive, Mina said, but they weren't aware the suspect had stalked Grimmie.