Virginia Tech Shootings:

Musical memorials

The music of one of the victims has gained posthumous popularity on the internet.

Dan O’Neil’s acoustic guitar music is on-line at residenthippy.com and myspace.com/residenthippy and since he became a victim at Virginia Tech the tracks on his myspace page alone have been played over 100,000 times.

O’Neil, 22, was a graduate student studying environmental engineering when he was killed in the engineering building at Virginia Tech.

A passionate musician, O’Neil played the guitar and sang. He recorded songs, many of which he wrote, with a microphone he received free with his computer.

In a comment to The New York Times, Jay Jimenez said, “As I listened to this young man’s music, I was somehow comforted despite the tears that flowed freely down my face. I did not know Dan O’Neil, but this one moment alone with his music is something I will surely treasure.”

“It’s amazing. I can’t even believe it,” said Amanda Burbank, who can be heard dueting with O’Neil on several songs, to the Associated Press about the response to his music.

“It just means a lot to us,” she added.

His close friends have set up a memorial fund in his memory and also intend to release a CD of his music.

Elsewhere an already popular artist decided to produce a musical memorial to the victims. RnB star R. Kelly has recorded the track ‘Rise Up’ to honour the dead.

The song that can be heard on Kelly’s myspace page features lyrics such as, “Rise up, when you feel you can’t go on / rise up, and all of your hope is gone / rise up, when you’re weak and you can’t be strong.”

Kelly’s record label, Jive Records’ said that the track will be digitally available from May 15 and that all the proceeds will go to the Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund.

The Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund was created to provide assistance to the victims of the families, as well as grief counselling and other needs for those affected by the shootings.

Editorial - May 2007