Country, folk legend John Prine dies fighting coronavirus

Singer-songwriter John Prine died from complications related to COVID-19, his family said Tuesday night. He was 73.

The country-folk singer was at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville being treated for coronavirus when he passed, his family said.

Prine said he was discovered by film critic Roger Ebert in Chicago. The journalist wrote a glowing review of the artist in the Sun-Times newspaper, and his career went from delivering mail to writing lyrics Bob Dylan would call “pure Proustian existentialism.”

Prine was particularly admired by his fellow singer-songwriters. Dylan called him one of his favorite songwriters, and Johnny Cash said he listened to Prine’s music for his own musical inspiration.

He received lifetime achievement recognition from the Grammy Awards this year. In 2015, he was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.

source: nbcnews.com