Brett James, Grammy-winning ‘Jesus, Take the Wheel’ songwriter, dies at 57

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FILE-Brett James performs during the 2013 CMA Songwriters Series at the CMA Theater on November 5, 2013 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Marianna Massey/WireImage/Getty Image)

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What we know:

Brett James, the Grammy-winning songwriter best known for writing hit songs like Carrie Underwood’s "Jesus, Take the Wheel," has died. He was 57.

The Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame announced his death in a Facebook post, explaining that he was killed in a plane crash on Thursday.

James and two other people were killed when a small plane crash occurred near Iotla Valley Elementary School in North Carolina. WRDW-TV in North Carolina, citing FlightAware data, reported that a Cirrus SR22T plane took off from John C. Tune Airport in Nashville before it crashed in North Carolina.

The North Carolina State Highway Patrol confirmed James' death Friday. The other two people on the plane were Melody Carole and Meryl Maxwell Wilson, the patrol confirmed.

What we don't know:

It was not clear who was flying the plane. The cause of the crash was also not immediately known; the National Transport Safety Board is currently investigating.

Who was Brett James?

The backstory:

Brett James was a renowned country songwriter composing hits like Carrie Underwood’s "Jesus Take the Wheel," Taylor Swift’s "A Perfectly Good Heart," Brantley Gilbert’s "Bottoms Up" and Rascal Flatts’ "Summer Nights."

In 1995, James released his own self-titled album but later transitioned to songwriting, where he gained fame writing songs for artists, including Billy Ray Cyrus, Kenny Chesney, and Martina McBride.

The New York Post reported that James wrote 27 number one hit songs on country radio and worked with Kenny Chesney, Tim McGraw, and Bon Jovi. 

In 2020, James was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame.