Tomás Eduardo Tovar Rascón, better known as Tito Torbellino rose to fame in the regional Mexican music genre by releasing more than a dozen albums in a 14-year span. His greatest hits included "La Cita" and "Mi clave es el 01". Rascón had done duets with artists like Espinoza Paz and Larry Hernández.
Torbellino was having lunch with two companions at a restaurant in Obregon, a city located in the Mexican state of Sonora, when the assailants rushed in, secured the doors, and opened fire on the singer.
Torbellino, 33, suffered gunshot wounds to the head and chest, reported ABC.es and was transported to a local hospital, where he was declared dead.
Torbellino was scheduled to perform on Friday at Expo Obregon, sharing the bill with Maria Jose and Reik.
Fans and other artists have taken to social media in an outpour of grief and shock.
In recent years, members of other musical groups have been slayed in Mexico, usually groups that perform "narcocorridos" that glorify the exploits of drug traffickers.
But while some guns could be seen in Torbellino's music videos, his songs predominantly focused on unrequited love, not drug cartels.
Authorities say drug capos sometimes prey on musicians due to their ties to rivals or romantic involvements.
Elijah Wald, author of the book "Narcocorrido: A Journey into the Music of Drugs, Guns and Guerrillas," mentioned previous victims including performers from a number of genres not only narcocorridos. Getting involved with the girlfriend of a criminal, for example, could turn out to be fatal.
"In that world, it's probably more dangerous to be singing romantic songs than narcocorridos because it increases the chances that somebody's girlfriend will suddenly decide that you're the cutest thing ever," he said.
Wald expressed he didn't know of the motive of Torbellino's killing, but said that the singer appears to have recently become eminent.
"It's often just a matter of somebody sponsoring someone who isn't paying them back or isn't being properly respectful once they make it," Wald said.
"You're in a world where's it's very, very easy to be in the wrong place at the wrong time, or have the wrong friends or look sideway at the wrong girl. The list of things you can do wrong once you're in that world gets very large."
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