Support for rapper Lil Tjay pours in from fans, fellow artists after Edgewater shooting

Not long after popular Bronx rapper Lil Tjay was shot at a shopping center in Edgewater, supportive social media posts began pouring in from fans and peers alike.

"Pray for my lil bro lil Tjay," tweeted rapper French Montana, who had collaborated with Tjay on songs.

Tjay, whose real name is Tione Merritt, was taken to a local hospital after getting shot multiple times just after midnight Wednesday, the Bergen County Prosecutor's Office said.

Prosecutors arrested Mohamed Konate, 27, of New York City, on charges of attempted murder, armed robbery and weapons offenses, accusing the man of firing at the rapper as well as Jeffrey Valdez, 24, and Antoine Boyd, 22, both of the Bronx, who were with him. An earlier update from prosecutors said one victim had been upgraded to stable after previously having been in critical condition. Another victim was in "good" condition.

After the news broke Wednesday, the support began flooding in.

On Instagram, Tjay collaborator Fivio Foreign posted "Pull thru gangsta @liltjay" in front of a black background on his story.

More: Lil Tjay, hip-hop heartthrob, was looking forward to 'good summer' before shooting in NJ

Rapper Denzel Curry posted prayer hand emojis on his Instagram story over a post about Tjay, adding to the plethora of online support.

As of Thursday morning, #LilTjay was still trending on Twitter, and was atop the entertainment trends on the social media app.

Rapper Rubi Rose chimed in support of Tjay on Twitter, urging people to pray for the young hip hop talent.

NBA player Miles Bridges who also moonlights as a rapper, tweeted "Not Lil Tjay y'all pray for bro."

Fans flocked to Twitter to espouse prayers for Tjay, who is a rising star in hip-hop.

Tjay has 7 million followers on Instagram and has released two studio albums through Columbia Records that each charted in the top five on the Billboard 200. His 2021 song with singer 6lack "Calling My Name" debuted at number three on the Billboard Hot 100.

The shooting of Tjay drew comparisons to that of the late rapper Pop Smoke, who was shot and killed in 2020, months before his 21st birthday. Tjay and Pop Smoke collaborated on the 2020 song "Mood Swings."

As of Thursday morning, prosecutors did not provide an update on Tjay's condition, but in a Wednesday press release said Boyd, who suffered a gunshot wound, and Valdez, were both in custody at Bergen County Jail after charging them each with possession of an unlawful weapon.

TMZ reported Wednesday evening that Tjay was still in the hospital.

Liam Quinn is a breaking news reporter for NorthJersey.com. To get breaking news directly to your inbox, sign up for our newsletter.

Email: quinnl@northjersey.com

Twitter: @Liam_D_Quinn

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: New York rapper Lil Tjay shot in Edgewater NJ: Fans react