Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani’s Friend Busbee Passes Away: ‘Too Much Pain and Unfairness’

RIP. Blake Shelton and Gwen Stefani’s friend Michael James Ryan, known professionally as “Busbee,” has died at just 43 years old. The country singer took to Twitter to share his thoughts about the Grammy-nominated music producer and songwriter. “I absolutely can’t accept the loss of mine and Gwen’s friend Michael (Busbee),” he began on Monday, September 30. “Too much to say for social media. Too much pain and unfairness, period. I guess sometimes you gotta dig extra EXTRA deep for peace to continue to have faith. And I will because Michael ALWAYS had faith.”

Busbee worked with big artists including Keith Urban, Blake, Maren Morris, Shakira and Pink. The hitmaker had reportedly been diagnosed with Glioblastoma — a form of brain cancer — this past summer before his untimely death, Variety reported.

I absolutely can’t accept the loss of mine and Gwen’s friend Michael (Busbee)..Too much to say for social media. Too much pain and unfairness period. I guess sometimes you gotta dig extra EXTRA deep for peace to continue to have faith. And I will because Michael ALWAYS had faith.

— Blake Shelton (@blakeshelton) September 30, 2019

Of course, fans comforted the 43-year-old Oklahoma native on social media. One person wrote, “I’m so sorry for your loss. It’s truly shocking even for us who didn’t know him personally,” while another echoed, “Condolences to you both. May his memory be a blessing.” A third chimed in, writing, “I’m so sorry for your loss. Sending you and Gwen lots of love.”

Many other celebrities in the music industry reacted to the sad news, too. Maren — Busbee recently produced 11 of the 15 tracks on her latest album, Girl, this year — wrote, “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.” Adam Lambert also tweeted, writing, “Shocked and saddened by the news today that we have lost Busbee. I am so grateful I was able to have collaborated with him. He was brilliant and warm, with palpable joy for his craft. RIP, Sir.”

Busbee was clearly loved by many in the music community, and he even shared his best piece of career advice a few years ago. “Put your head down and play the long game,” he told The Tennessean in 2017. “It’s a very competitive world, and if you get too caught up in what other people are doing, or what opportunities certain people are getting, it’s just going to drive you crazy. There’s enough success for everybody.”

We are thinking of Blake and Gwen and all of Busbee’s friends and family during this tough time.