Cody Johnson Recalls Near-Death Experience On Private Plane: “The Engines Failed… We Were Falling Out Of The Sky”

Cody Johnson once had a near-death experience on a private plane. In a June interview with Country Now, Johnson recalled the experience and shared the impact it had on him and his chart-topping single, “‘Til You Can’t.” “I won’t go…

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Christine Sellers

Christine Sellers is a full-time fact-check reporter who also enjoys writing about music. She graduated from college in 2015 with a Bachelor of Arts in English and a Journalism minor. When Christine isn’t fact-checking current events or writing articles about her favorite artists, she enjoys spending time with her family and friends, playing with her dog, and writing for pleasure.

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Posted on November 3, 2022

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Cody Johnson; © Grand Ole Opry, Photo by Chris Hollo/Opry

Cody Johnson once had a near-death experience on a private plane. In a June interview with Country Now, Johnson recalled the experience and shared the impact it had on him and his chart-topping single, “‘Til You Can’t.”

“I won’t go into it too completely, but I had a very, very scary near-death experience on a plane this year, on a private aircraft that literally was going down,” Johnson told the outlet. “The engines failed. We were falling out of the sky.” 

Johnson previously spoke about the incident with Taste Of Country Nights. The country singer said he was headed to a NASCAR event aboard a private plane with his wife and management team when the pilot informed them the aircraft was “going down.”

“I said, ‘You mean we’re taking it down.’ He said, ‘No, you need to prepare yourself. We’re going down,’” Johnson said. 

After that, the plane’s altitude dropped, alarms began sounding, and panels came off of the plane’s walls, the singer told the outlet.

“I really sat there for about 30 minutes as the plane was going down, with my wife, like, ‘This is it. I love you,’” he recalled. “I’m thinking about things I regret. I’m thinking about things I could’ve done. Why did I tell my little girls I was too busy to get on the floor and play? Why didn’t I make that phone call and apologize to that person? Why didn’t I tell that person, ‘Hey, it’s OK to be Christian and not be perfect’? All those opportunities that I didn’t seize, and even my wife — why don’t I do these things?” he added.

Thankfully, Johnson survived the experience. It also gave him a new perspective for his song, “‘Til You Can’t.”

“I played the song at the next show and I just started crying,” Johnson told Country Now, adding that he shared the story about his near-death experience with the fans in attendance so they would understand why he was so emotional.

Johnson also said the near-death experience was “a wake-up call” and reminded him that he doesn’t have “everything figured out.”

“We’re not guaranteed the next minute,” Johnson reiterated while speaking with Taste of Country Nights.

Johnson earned his first-ever career No. 1 with “‘Til You Can’t” back in March.

Additionally, the Texas native is set to take the stage at the 56th Annual CMA Awards on Wednesday, November 9 to perform his chart-topping hit, “‘Til You Can’t.” Johnson is also nominated for several awards at the 2022 CMA Awards, including Male Vocalist Of The Year and New Artist Of The Year. In addition, his single “‘Til You Can’t” is also nominated for Single Of The Year and the visual for the tune is up for Music Video Of The Year at the CMA Awards.

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Christine Sellers is a full-time fact-check reporter who also enjoys writing about music. She graduated from college in 2015 with a Bachelor of Arts in English and a Journalism minor. When Christine isn’t fact-checking current events or writing articles about her favorite artists, she enjoys spending time with her family and friends, playing with her dog, and writing for pleasure.

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