Carrie Underwood took to social media on Friday to pay tribute to Brett James, who co-wrote her Grammy-winning 2005 song Jesus, Take the Wheel.
James was tragically killed in a plane crash alongside two others on Thursday at age 57.
The 42-year-old American Idol winner was a close collaborator of his and mourned his loss in a lengthy, heart-wrenching caption.
‘Some things are just unfathomable. The loss of Brett James to his family, friends and our music community is too great to put into words,’ Underwood began.
She added, ‘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.’
And the longtime performer mused, ‘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.’
Carrie Underwood took to social media on Friday to pay tribute to Brett James, who co-wrote her Grammy-winning 2005 song Jesus, Take the Wheel
Brett was tragically killed in a plane crash alongside two others on Thursday at age 57; pictured in 2005
She went on to share an anecdote about one of their songwriting sessions.
‘He was a good guy,’ she prefaced before reflecting, ‘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…’
The songstress then spoke to Brett’s strong faith, calling it ‘the only comfort we can hold on to now.’
‘Brett loved the Lord,’ she stated before adding elsewhere in the note, ‘We even had the pleasure of singing together at church.’
The Oklahoma native shared with her 13.4 million followers, ‘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.’
James was onboard his Cirrus SR22T when it went down near a school at around 3pm in Franklin, North Carolina, WLOS reported.
He and two other passengers — later revealed to be his girlfriend Melody Wilson, 59, and her daughter Meryl Maxwell Wilson, 28 — were pronounced dead at the scene.
L-R Songwriters Ashley Gorley, Hillary Lindsey, Carrie, Zach Crowell and Brett pictured on August 11, 2016
News of James’ death was announced in a statement from Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame. He was inducted in 2020; pictured in Nashville in 2022
Underwood expressed in her Instagram caption: ‘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.’
She solemnly continued, ‘I’m asking all of you to pray for his family, friends and all of us that were blessed enough to know Brett.’
And finally, she wrote, ‘Love you, man. I’ll see you again someday.’
Carrie UnderwoodAmerican Idol
