(WJW) – Brit Turner, drummer and founding member of the Southern rock band Blackberry Smoke, has died at the age of 57.
The band announced Turner’s passing Sunday on social media.
“It is with the deepest sorrow that we inform everyone that our brother @brittturner13 has moved on from this life,” they shared.
Turner had been diagnosed with glioblastoma, a cancer of the brain, in 2022.
“Brit has battled glioblastoma since his diagnosis in the fall of 2022 and fought every day,” the band wrote.
“If you had the privilege of knowing Brit on any level, you know he was the most caring, empathetic, driven and endearing person one could ever hope to meet. Brit was Blackberry Smoke’s True North, the compass that instituted the ideology that will continue to guide this band,” the statement continued.
Blackberry Smoke formed in 2000 in Atlanta, Georgia. Their albums “Holding All the Roses” and “Like an Arrow” each charted at No. 1 on Billboard’s top country albums.