00:00TikTok star Joshua Blackledge has passed away at the age of 16, leaving fans and loved ones
00:06in mourning.
00:07Blackledge, a junior at West Carteret High School, has amassed over 1.1 million followers
00:12on TikTok.
00:13His engaging content featured lip-syncing videos, car clips, and moments with his friends
00:18and girlfriend, Emmy Gilligan.
00:20According to Carolina Coast Online, Blackledge passed away on March 18th at his home in Newport,
00:25North Carolina.
00:27No cause of death has been publicly disclosed.
00:30Blackledge's final TikTok, posted on March 14th, featured him posing with friends by
00:34a white truck.
00:36Many viewers have expressed disbelief that he passed away so soon after uploading the
00:40video.
00:41This user wrote,
00:42Death is so odd, because what do you mean he was alive 6 days ago?
00:46Another chimed in,
00:47I actually can't believe he's passed away, like I'm in shock, this is very sad.
00:52And this user added that Blackledge didn't even get to celebrate hitting 1 million followers
00:57on TikTok.
00:58His girlfriend, Emmy Gilligan, shared an emotional tribute on March 20th, compiling clips from
01:02their relationship and expressing her grief.
01:05In the caption, she wrote,
01:06Missing this sweet boy right now.
01:08Never would have thought I would have been here without you.
01:10Josh showed me what love really was, even though I'm very young.
01:13He never failed to put a smile on my face, no matter how mad I was at him.
01:17Even after these past couple days, nothing seems real and I'm feeling all the emotions.
01:22A celebration of life was held in his honor on March 23rd, with an outpouring of support
01:27from fans and friends who left condolences on his obituary page and social media.
01:33His family has not released further details regarding his death, and the community remains
01:37in mourning over the sudden loss of the young influencer.
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