Grammy winning songwriter Brett James dies in plane crash

WEB DESK: Grammy Award-winning country songwriter Brett James along with his three family members has died in a plane crash in North Carolina.

Brett James, 57, was on board his private jet with his new wife and her 28-year-old daughter when a single-engine Cirrus SR22T aircraft went down in a wooded area near Macon County Airport, killing all three, officials confirmed Friday.

The plane had taken off from Nashville before the crash, which occurred under unknown circumstances.

James’ wife, Wilson, had been living with him in their $2 million Nashville home since at least 2020. Just a day before the crash, she had publicly wished her daughter a happy 28th birthday.

James, who won a Grammy Award for Best Country Song for Jesus, Take the Wheel sung by Carrie Underwood, was widely regarded as one of Nashville’s most influential songwriters.

The track also earned a nomination for Song of the Year and remains a defining moment in both James’ and Underwood’s careers.

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Reacting to the tragedy, Underwood said the news was “just unfathomable.” She described James as “the epitome of cool,” adding, “My favourite songs to sing are the ones he or we wrote about Jesus because the feelings behind them are genuine and pure. I’ll never sing those songs again without thinking of him. His passing leaves a hole in all of us that may never heal.”

James also wrote hits for artists including Taylor Swift, Kelly Clarkson, Bon Jovi, and Jason Aldean. Aldean, who recorded The Truth written by James, said he was “heartbroken,” noting, “He helped change my life. I had nothing but love and respect for him.”

Paul Williams, president of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP), remembered him as “a songwriting force of nature” who penned more than 500 songs across genres. “He wrote big hits but had an even bigger heart,” Williams said.

James was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2020. He also won ASCAP’s songwriter of the year award twice, in 2006 and 2010.

The National Transportation Safety Board has launched an investigation into the crash.