A young B.C. musical prodigy has been killed in a car crash.
Nell Smith, 17, from Fernie, recorded several songs with the Grammy Award-winning band The Flaming Lips. She was also working on new music.
An Instagram post from her parents on Monday says Smith was “cruelly taken from them” on Saturday.
“We are reeling from the news and don’t know what to do or say,” the post reads.
“She had so much more to experience and to give this world but we are grateful that she got to experience so very much in her 17 years. She has left an indelible mark on the word and an unfillable chasm in our hearts.”
Lead vocalist and founder of The Flaming Lips, Wayne Coyne, said during a concert on Sunday that Smith died in a car crash.
The co-founder of Smith’s record label, Bella Union, also paid tribute to the teenager saying she was killed in a car crash in B.C.
“Nell was just 17 and was preparing for the release of her first solo record in early 2025 on Bella Union, made in Brighton with Penelope Isles’ Jack and Lily Wolter,” the post reads.
“Her first release was an album of covers of Nick Cave songs recorded with fellow Bella Union artistes The Flaming Lips back in 2021 entitled, “Where The Viaduct Looms”.
Smith was just 10 years old when she saw The Flaming Lips at a concert in Calgary and later ended up recording with them.