Kyle Jacobs, Songwriter and Kellie Pickler’s Husband, Found Dead at 49

Kyle Jacobs, a songwriter and husband to singer Kellie Pickler, has died. He was 49.

The Metropolitan Nashville Police Department said Friday in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter that Jacobs’ death was being investigated as an apparent suicide.

Emergency personnel found Jacobs’ body in the couple’s Nashville home after receiving a 911 call, police said. “Mr. Jacobs’ wife, Kellie Pickler, reported that she awoke a short time earlier, did not see her husband, and began looking for him,” according to the statement. “After she and her personal assistant were unable to open the door to the upstairs bedroom/office, the assistant telephoned 911.”

Jacobs and Pickler married in 2011 after being introduced by mutual friends a few years prior. The pair also starred in the reality TV show I Love Kellie Pickler on CMT, which ran for three seasons from 2015 to 2017.

Jacobs co-wrote Garth Brooks’ 2007 chart-topping single “More Than a Memory,” as well as Tim McGraw’s “Still” and Eli Young Band’s “Dust.” During his career, Jacobs also produced several of Lee Brice’s top hits, including “I Drive Your Truck,” “Rumor,” “Hard to Love,” and “Drinking Class.” Other artists who have recorded his songs include Trace Adkins, Jo Dee Messina, Craig Morgan and Scotty McCreery.

Pickler competed on the fifth season of American Idol and finished in sixth place. In 2006, she released her debut album, Small Town Girl. According to Billboard, she later earned a top 10 hit on Billboard’s Country Airplay chart with “Best Days of Your Life,” from her 2008 self-titled album. The singer released her last album, The Woman I Am, in 2013.