Visionary Songwriter And Producer busbee Dies At 43

Visionary songwriter busbee has passed away according to news shared by country artist Maren Morris via Twitter.

The writer and producer known for his genre-bending talents has collaborated with a broad range of artists, including Morris, Shakira, Usher, Lady Antebellum, Jon Bellion, Blake Shelton, Timbaland, 5 Seconds of Summer, Keith Urban, and Jason Aldean, among others. He was previously signed to BMG.

This just doesn’t seem fair. I will always love you and the songs and albums I was lucky to make with you, Busbee. Rest well, my sweet friend. ? pic.twitter.com/9DKsU5G77a

— MAREN MORRIS (@MarenMorris) September 30, 2019

Earlier this year, busbee, whose given name is Michael James Ryan, celebrated the launch of his new company, Altadena, which is a growing force in the launching and development of careers of artists, producers, and songwriters in a variety of genres, with offices in Los Angeles and Nashville.

In 2018, busbee signed a worldwide publishing agreement with Warner/Chappell Music.

A year earlier, busbee received a BMI Song of the Year award for co-writing Florida Georgia Line’s No. 1 hit, “H.O.L.Y.” He also co-produced Grammy-winning artist Maren Morris’ breakthrough album, Hero, and co-wrote her first two hit singles, “My Church” and “80s Mercedes.” busbee also co-wrote Keith Urban’s “The Fighter” ft. Carrie Underwood which won an ACM Award for Vocal Event of the Year, and produced Lady Antebellum’s 2017 Grammy-nominated album, Heart Break, co-writing six songs, including the hit single, “You Look Good.”

Additionally, busbee produced and contributed to songs on the breakout albums from emerging country stars Lauren Alaina (Road Less Traveled) and Carly Pearce (Every Little Thing), having written Pearce’s breakout single of the same name, which made her the only female to debut at No. 1 on Billboard’s Country Airplay chart in 2017.

He co-wrote and co-produced Rachel Platten’s “Collide”; co-wrote and produced P!nk’s “Wild Hearts Can’t Be Broken” and co-produced Gwen Stefani’s holiday album, You Make It Feel Like Christmas, co-writing all six of the original songs.

Other notable busbee hits include “Try” by P!nk, “Dark Side” by Kelly Clarkson, and numerous other top ten singles. His recent collaborations include Jon Bellion, Justin Tranter, James Arthur, Lady Antebellum, Missio, and Maren Morris’ current album, Girl, released in January of this year.