Nashville Singer-Songwriter Terri Lynn Kathey Found Dead

Nashville-based singer-songwriter Terri Lynn Kathey has been found dead, just days after she disappeared in Tennessee while on her way to deliver a package.

Chattanooga news station WTVC ABC News Channel 9 reports that the 71-year-old blues and gospel singer's body was found at the Monteagle welcome center just off I-24 near Chattanooga on Tuesday (June 18). The Metro Nashville Police Department has confirmed the news to WTVC.

"I believe detectives have been in touch with the family and local law enforcement in that area," a spokesman for MNPD states. "Not sure of her cause of death at this point, but appears that it is most likely going to be natural."

Kathey also performed under the name Terri Lynn Blues. She and her husband, Nashville drummer Kevin Kathey, owned a courier service, and Terri Lynn Kathey disappeared on Sunday (June 16) after leaving her house at about 4:30AM to go pick up a package that was bound for Chattanooga.

A friend reported seeing her at a gas station on Music Valley Drive at 6:10AM on Sunday, behaving normally.
She used her debit card at Hardee's on Elm Hill Pike around 6:30AM.
Her husband reported her missing on Monday morning (June 17).
Police pinged her phone to a tower on Monteagle Mountain, and Kevin Kathey spent several days driving the area looking for his wife to no avail.

Kathey was driving a 2017 Honda Civic when she left home, and police found no evidence that the car had been impounded or repossessed. Checks of hospitals and jails also failed to turn up any clues.

It's not clear who found Kathey's body at the welcome center in Chattanooga. A Facebook post from family friend Kerry Pharr indicated that Kathey was found in her car after a possible heart attack.

Kathey's management group, New Breed Music Group, shared the news of her death in a post that celebrated her music and her Christian faith:

Kevin Kathey is a notable Nashville drummer who has played with Charlie Louvin, Tommy Overstreet, Emmylou Harris, Joey + Rory and more, according to LinkedIn. He also owns Next Exit Productions, which produces music and voiceover sessions.

Friends and colleagues flooded his Facebook page with prayers during the search for his wife, and they have posted a number of tributes, prayers and condolences since the news broke of her passing.

Sterling Whitaker is a Senior Writer and Senior Editor for Taste of Country. He focuses on celebrity real estate, as well as coverage of Yellowstone and related shows like 1883 and 1923. He's interviewed cast members including Cole Hauser, Kelly Reilly, Sam Elliott and Harrison Ford, and Whitaker is also known for his in-depth interviews with country legends including Don Henley, Rodney Crowell, Trace Adkins, Ronnie Milsap, Ricky Skaggs and more.