A rockstar.
An irreplaceable friend.
The oldest sister to her two brothers.
Jillian Ludwig was an 18-year-old music business major at Belmont University. She was just starting to find her place in the program as a first semester freshman.
Until her future was taken away from her by a stray bullet fired in the Edgehill neighborhood Tuesday afternoon.
A bass player and avid fan of concerts, Ludwig found a new home in Nashville. Before her time here, she attended Wall High School in New Jersey.
Ludwig was, first and foremost, a performer. Before coming to Belmont, she played in a band called Arcadia and was often see performing in venues along the Jersey Shore.
Abby Maguire, freshman, heard of Ludwig before she even arrived on campus.
“I would see her at concerts at the Stone Pony, and a bunch of other venues in New Jersey on the beach. I just thought she was the coolest person ever,” she said.
Maguire, though she didn’t know Ludwig well, said she was her idol, describing her as a “rockstar.”
“She was ripping this bass line, and we waved to her and she recognized us! So we were in the crowd, and you see her face light up. She was so excited,” she said.
Maguire also always admired Ludwig’s showmanship and the way she captivated a crowd.
“The hair, the makeup, the outfits, the personality, she's such an angel,” she said. “She'll always be like my idol, I want to be just like her when I play music and perform live. I hope to be half the musician that she was.”
Ludwig was the oldest of three children and will be remembered by her family for her “fearlessness, spontaneity, love of laughter, kindness and compassion make her irreplaceable to our family,” said her Aunt Geri Wainwright in a statement to WSMV4.
A light to all around, Ludwig impacted many students across the Belmont community.
Katie Allen, a sophomore music business major, mourns the loss of a life full of opportunites cut tragically short. She shared a macroeconomics class with Ludwig.
“She was just 18, in her first semester. She didn’t get through a full semester of college.
Where would she have been in five years? Would she have been working at a record label?” said Allen. “You just go down that rabbit hole.”
Though Ludwig never got to fulfill those dreams, she remains a pillar and an inspiration for friends and family, both in Nashville and New Jersey.
This article is being updated with information from friends and family of Ludwig.
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This article was written by Braden Simmons and Katie Beth Cannon