Brett James

Brett James Cornelius, the Grammy-winning Nashville songwriter professionally known as Brett James, died September 18, 2025, in a plane crash near Franklin, North Carolina. He was 57. He co-wrote enduring hits including "Jesus, Take the Wheel" for Carrie Underwood and "When the Sun Goes Down" for Kenny Chesney.

Authorities said a Cirrus SR22T carrying three people crashed near Iotla Valley Elementary School. There were no survivors. The single-engine aircraft had departed from Nashville's John C. Tune Airport. Fellow passengers were identified as Melody Carole and Meryl Maxwell Wilson. No injuries on the ground were reported.

James was born June 5, 1968, in Columbia, Missouri, and was raised in the Oklahoma City area. He graduated from Baylor University in 1991, then attended medical school before leaving to pursue music in Nashville.

Signed as a recording artist in the mid-1990s, he soon found his calling in the writers' room. His first No. 1 came in 2001 with "Who I Am" for Jessica Andrews. Over the next two decades, he amassed a catalog recorded hundreds of times, including chart-toppers for Martina McBride, Faith Hill, Jason Aldean, Rodney Atkins, and Kenny Chesney. Several sources credit him with 27 No. 1 country singles.

"Jesus, Take the Wheel" earned the 2006 Grammy Award for Best Country Song. James was ASCAP Country Songwriter of the Year in 2006 and 2010 and was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2020. His songs were recorded across genres by artists from Kelly Clarkson to Bon Jovi.

Colleagues and artists mourned his death. Dierks Bentley saluted the collaboration behind "I Hold On," and industry groups praised James as an advocate for fellow writers. Tributes reflected the breadth of a career that helped define 21st-century country music.

By Legacy News Staff

(Image: Michael Loccisano/FilmMagic for Country Music Association)