Carrie Underwood has paid a moving tribute to her late collaborator Brett James, who tragically died in a plane crash this week.
The 57-year-old country music singer and songwriter was among three passengers on a single-engine Cirrus SR22T that took off from John C. Tune Airport in Nashville, Tennessee, on Thursday.
The aircraft tragically went down in a field close to Iotla Valley Elementary School, killing all three people on board, authorities said.
Brett had a brief career as a singer in the late 1990s, but was most known for his songwriting, including Carrie’s 2005 hit Jesus, Take the Wheel.
The single, which sold millions of copies in the US, earned Brett a Grammy Award for Best Country Song in 2007 and helped cement his place among great American songwriters.
“Brett was the epitome of ‘cool.’ I see him in my mind riding up to my cabins to write on his motorcycle…his hair somehow perfectly coiffed despite being under a helmet for however long. I always loved hearing him sing ‘Cowboy Casanova’ because a sassy girl anthem should’ve sounded ridiculous coming from a macho dude like him, but somehow, he even made that cool.
“He was a good guy. I remember writing with him on a song that he basically wrote 75% of and had ready when he walked in the room. We filled in the blanks and added a little melody and I told him after that I didn’t feel right splitting the credit evenly when he did most of the work. He wouldn’t have it. He insisted that everything be equal. He was just that kind of guy…”
Carrie continued, “Brett loved the Lord. Which is the only comfort we can hold on to now. We even had the pleasure of singing together at church. My favorite songs to sing of ours are the ones that he or we wrote about Jesus because the thoughts and feelings behind them are so genuine and pure. I won’t ever sing one note of them again without thinking of him.
“Brett’s passing is leaving a hole in all of us that I fear won’t ever go away. It will forever be a reminder that this life is but a moment…we have to make the most of each day we’re given here on earth. Each day is a gift.
“I’m asking all of you to pray for his family, friends and all of us that were blessed enough to know Brett. Love you, man. I’ll see you again someday.”
During his career as a songwriter, Brett also worked on the likes of Rascal Flatts’ Summer Nights and Brantley Gilbert’s Bottoms Up.
He wrote songs for artists including Bon Jovi and Jason Aldean and in 2020, he was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame.
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