One of songwriter Busbee's biggest hit country songs was "The Fighter," Keith Urban's duet with Carrie Underwood. It might not have happened without his above and beyond effort.

Urban told Taste of Country how Busbee helped solve a potentially devastating scheduling conflict. "The Fighter" was released on Urban's Ripcord album in 2016. Busbee (real name Michael James Ryan) died on Sunday (Sept. 29) at the age of 43. He reportedly had been diagnosed with a rare brain cancer a few months ago.

"She was on tour at the time," Urban said in 2016. "And I said 'How do I get you on this song?' and she said, 'Well, I got a day off in St. Louis.'"

That day was the day Urban had to film his music video for the song "Wasted Time." Enter Busbee, who co-wrote and produced "The Fighter."

"Busbee flew to St. Louis, got a studio, was in there with Carrie and I would take a break from filming and FaceTime with them," Urban recalled. They got the performance they wanted and turned the song into a big hit. "The Fighter" was a Top 5 hit that was certified double-platinum and won an ACM Vocal Event of the Year. The singers performed the song at the 2017 Grammys, as well.

2016 was arguably Busbee's breakout year as a songwriter, although he'd scored hits with Hunter Hayes, Florida Georgia Line and several pop writers before that. That year he co-produced Maren Morris' Hero album and wrote many songs for her (like "My Church"). He also had a big hand in Urban's progressive Ripcord album.

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