Jake Flint, an up-and-coming Oklahoma country singer-songwriter, died on Sunday, just hours after marrying his wife Brenda Flint. He was 37. The Red Dirt performer’s cause of death has not been determined, but his publicist said Flint died in his sleep.
Flint’s longtime publicist, Clif Doyal, told The Oklahoman the musician died in his sleep Sunday after his wedding on Saturday. “He was not only a client, he was a dear friend and just a super nice guy,” Doyal said of Flint. “As you can see from the outpouring on social media, he was loved by everybody. I think a lot of it was just that he was a people person, and he had an amazing sense of humor. He made everybody laugh, and he made everybody feel welcome.”
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The Tulsa-born Flint and Brenda married at a remote homestead between Claremore and Owasso, Oklahoma. The day was rainy, but Flint and Brenda did not let the weather stop their special day. Brenda shared a video from the wedding on Facebook, simply adding, “I don’t understand.”
Brenda also published a heartbreaking statement about having to choose clothes for Flint to be buried in when the couple should be together going through wedding pictures. “People aren’t meant to feel this much pain,” Brenda wrote on Facebook Tuesday. “My heart is gone and I just really need him to come back. I can’t take much more. I need him here.”
Mike Hosty, a one-man band who performed at the wedding, said Flint was a “big personality” with a “bit heart.” Flint would “bend over backward to do anything for you,” Hosy told The Oklahoman. “When any musician asks you to play at their wedding, it’s one of those most important days… and it’s always an honor. I really just like remembering that happy moment of seeing them being married… but I really feel for Brenda.”
The “Long Road Back Home” singer grew up in Holdenville and began playing music after his father was diagnosed with ALS. His father asked his friends to teach Flint to play guitar and took him to regional bluegrass festivals. This inspired Flint’s love of bluegrass, but he was also influenced by Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Phish, String Cheese Incident, and Red Dirt stars like Tom Skinner and The Great Divide. He recorded four albums, I’m Not Okay (2016), Live and Not OK at Cain’s Ballroom (2018), Jake Flint (2020) and Live and Socially Distanced at Mercury Lounge (2021).
Flint won the Breakout Artist of the Year at the 2019 We Are Tulsa Music Awards. The singer and his band toured throughout Oklahoma and Texas and performed at festivals in both states. He was a supporter of the nonprofit Red Dirt Relief Fund.
“Jake has a million friends and I’m not sure how everyone will cope with this tragic loss. We need prayers… it’s all so surreal,” Brenda Cline, Flint’s business adviser and former manager, wrote on Facebook. “Please please pray for his new wife Brenda, Jake’s precious mother, his sister, and the rest of his family and friends. This is going to be incredibly difficult for so many. We love you Jake and in our hearts forever.”
