HALIFAX -- A man murdered in the greater Toronto area is being remembered in Halifax as a friend, father, and music producer, who grew up in the Uniacke Square neighborhood.

Those who knew Ryan Lorde are shocked by what happened on Tuesday night in Georgetown, Ont., about an hour outside Toronto.

In the normally-quiet neighborhood, police found the 36-year-old Lorde dead outside his own home. Investigators ruled it a homicide.

Lorde was known in the Canadian hip-hop world as "Littles the General" -- first a rapper, then a music promoter.

"It's really, really heartbreaking," said Lorde's friend James Bundy.

They were childhood friends and grew up together in Halifax. They kept in touch after Lorde moved to Ontario about 10 years ago.

Bundy says Lorde had just talked to him a little over a week ago about coming to visit.

"I'm very confused on how it happened, and why it happened, especially in front of his home, which is the scary part of the whole situation," Bundy said.

Bundy says Lorde returned to Halifax often, and when he did, would connect with his community and perform.

He had collaborated with Maritime artists like Quake Matthews over the years. Those in the Halifax music community reached by CTV News on Friday were too emotional to speak in an interview.

In Toronto, Lorde was also a member of the rap group "The Offense" and was known for taking on Drake.

Bundy says Lorde used his lyrics to tell his story.

"He spoke about what he'd been through, and it's just, it hurts, just to even think about it, it really, really hurts because he's just such a great guy," Bundy said. "He always looked out for people -- always."

Over the past few years, Lorde had married and became a father. That family is now suddenly left without him.

There is an online fundraising campaign to provide support to Lorde's wife and three children.

Halton Regional Police haven't made any arrests at this point in Lorde's killing.

Police have also been asking anyone in the area where he lived, who may have CCTV camera footage, to contact them.

Editor's note: CTV was initially told that Ryan Lorde grew up in Mulgrave Park. A family member later clarified that Lorde, in fact, grew up in Uniacke Square. The article has been corrected to reflect the clarification.