Jeremy Tepper, Program Director of SiriusXM’s Outlaw Country, Dies at 60

Jeremy Tepper, a musician, journalist and the program director of SiriusXM’s Outlaw Country channel, has died. He was 60.

Tepper passed away on Friday (June 14) from a heart attack at his home in New York City, according to a social media post by his wife, singer-songwriter Laura Cantrell.

“Lost my good friend Jeremy Tepper last night,” Steven Van Zandt, guitarist in Bruce Springsteen’s E Street Band and founder of Underground Garage, wrote on X (formerly Twitter). “An incredibly tragic loss so young. He ran my Outlaw Country station on SiriusXM brilliantly. It is actually quite a complicated format and he made it look easy. Our deepest love and condolences to Laura and his family and friends.”

Born in 1963, the New York native graduated with a degree in journalism from NYU and served as the frontman for the band World Famous Blue Jays.

During his career, Tepper founded independent country label Diesel Only Records and held A&R and marketing positions for CDuctive and eMusic.com. He was also a journalist, having previously served as editor of The Journal of Country Music and as a country music critic for Tower Records’ Pulse! magazine.

In 2004, he joined Sirius as format manager of the radio giant’s Outlaw Country channel, which was created by Zandt, who served as its executive producer. The channel mixes music by country and Americana artists such as Waylon Jennings, Dale Watson, Dwight Yoakam, Johnny Cash and Lucinda Williams with rockers Bob Dylan, Bruce Springsteen and the Band.

Tepper’s two-decade run with Sirius also found him working on the Willie’s Roadhouse and Road Dog Trucking channels.

“Jeremy Tepper, a beloved member of SiriusXM, profoundly influenced us with his unwavering dedication to music and innovative spirit,” SiriusXM wrote on X. “His contributions, in shaping Outlaw Country and Willie’s Roadhouse, are beyond measure. Our thoughts are with his loved ones during this time.”

Tepper is survived by his wife, Cantrell, and their daughter, Bella.