The up-and-coming singer was 35 when he was killed in an accidental shooting.
We want to send prayers and best wishes out to the fans, friends and family of rising country music singer Justin Carter, whose death was reported Thursday.
According to Variety, People, Entertainment Weekly, Houston ABC affiliate KTRK-TV, and other news outlets, Carter, who was 35, was killed Saturday in The Woodlands area near Houston when a gun he was using as a prop for a music video being filmed at his apartment accidentally discharged.
Carter had recently signed with Triple Threat Management, and about to embark on a ten-state tour. He released an independently produced single, “Love Affair,” to digital services just last week, and had posted five music videos on his YouTube channel.
“Justin had a potential to, you know, in our eyes, and a lot of people’s eyes, to be the next Garth Brooks,” Mark Atherton of Triple Threat told KTRK, adding that his late client was “kind of like the class clown, but when it was time to get down to business, he got down to it.”
“He was a wonderful artist,” Cindy McClellan, Carter’s mother, told Fox News. “He was the voice, he was the total package and we're trying to keep his legend [alive].”
McCellan also told Fox that Carter leaves behind two young daughters, Dixie and Kaylee, and that the family has set up a GoFundMe account in order to cover funeral and burial expenses.
“He was a wonderful person, very loving and he loved our God very much,” McClellan said. “He had a Bible in his room, in the den, he had one in his truck. He gave to charities.”
Carter’s Facebook bio describes him as “a Texas-born and Texas-raised country boy to his core. His passion and drive stem from being influenced by some of the greats since he was just a child. He grew up listening to Waylon, Hank, George and Jones. Some of his favorites are Clay Walker, Garth Brooks and George Strait. Justin’s passion is derived from the sound of old country, and he clings to that feeling he gets when he hears it and tries to push that into his music. Times are changing and so are the generations taste in music, but Justin tries to keep a happy medium between both old and new to satisfy everyone.”