Brett James Cornelius, the Grammy Award-winning songwriter known professionally as Brett James, was killed in a plane crash on Thursday (September 18), according to reports. He was 57.

Local news outlets reported that a small aircraft registered to Brett Cornelius of Brentwood, Tennessee, crashed outside of Franklin, North Carolina, on Thursday afternoon.

FlightAware data indicates that the Cirrus SR22T took off from John C. Tune Airport in Nashville at 12:41 p.m. (CDT) before it crashed in North Carolina, according to WSMV. The Federal Aviation Commission said that the aircraft went down near an elementary school and was carrying three passengers, all of whom perished in the crash.

Who Was Brett James?

Brett James was a renowned songwriter who was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2020. He was also a two-time recipient of the ASCAP Country Songwriter of the Year Award (2006 and 2010).

James earned his first No. 1 hit in 2001 with Jessica Andrews’ “Who I Am.” Other songs that he either wrote or co-wrote include Carrie Underwood’s “Something In The Water,” “Jesus, Take The Wheel” and “Cowboy Casanova,” Kenny Chesney’s “When The Sun Goes Down,” “Out Last Night,” and “Keg In the Closet”), “I Hold On” by Dierks Bentley, “The Truth” by Jason Aldean, and Rascal Flatts’ “Summer Nights.”

“Jesus, Take The Wheel” earned James a Grammy for Best Country Song in 2006 and trophies for ACM Single of the Year, ASCAP Country Song of the Year, and NSAI Song of the Year.

Brett James had over 300 songs recorded on major labels over the course of his career.