Brett James was an established country singer-songwriter ahead of his tragic death in a September 2025 plane crash.

“I turned 50 last year, and I had one of those birthday epiphanies. I thought, ‘I’d been writing songs for other artists for a long time, and I wanted to re-evaluate things,’” James told Songwriter Universe in a 2020 interview. “I hadn’t put out any music of my own in around 25 years. … I got inspired to do that without thinking about genre or trying to write radio hits. I know what my most natural voice is, and that was my only preconceived take on things.”

James described his EP, I Am Now, as a “Nashville soul record.”

“I’m kind of a natural soul singer,” he told the outlet. “I started writing it and let creativity lead the way. I took time off from my day job as a worki

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