Oklahoma singer-songwriter Jake Flint and his wife, Brenda, didn’t seem to let the wet weather dampen their spirits as they exchanged vows Saturday at a remote home between Claremore and Owasso.
“It was raining, but he had rented a 40-by-60 circus tent. … They put up a bunch of mats over the mud and then they got two pieces of three-and-a-quarter inch plywood and laid them down. on the ground – and that was my step. Jake says, “Is that okay with you?” And I say, ‘Jake, that’s perfect.’ A piece of plywood or a flatbed trailer is where I shine,” said Norman-based one-man band Mike Hosty, who played the wedding.
“I still have the mud in my old van… but it was a fun wedding. And it was just a tragedy.”
On Sunday morning, Hosty received word that Flint had died in his sleep, just hours after exchanging vows with his bride.
“He was a singer-songwriter, through and through, and just a big personality, a big heart, and (he would) bend over backwards to do anything for you. When a musician asks you to play at their wedding, it’s a man. of those most important days … and it’s always an honor,” Hosty said.
“I like to remember that happy moment when I saw them get married … but I really feel for Brenda.
The shock and grief was palpable in the Oklahoma music community Monday as news of Flint’s sudden death at age 37 spread. His longtime publicist, Clif Doyal, confirmed to The Oklahoman that the Red Dirt singer-songwriter had died in his sleep after. Saturday wedding.
The cause of death has not yet been determined.
“He wasn’t just a client, he was a good friend and just a really nice guy. As you can see from the outpouring on social media, everyone loved it. I think a lot of it was just that it was a crowd. person, and he had a wonderful sense of humor. He made everyone smile, and he made everyone feel welcome,” Doyal said.
“He was an ambassador for Oklahoma Red Dirt music.”
Up-and-coming musician Red Dirt released four albums
Based in Tulsa, Flint grew up in Holdenville, the son of a wildcat oilman and a hard-working mother of two.
He started playing music after his father, who loved music, was diagnosed with ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis). Unable to participate in sports with his son, Flint’s father commissioned a couple of friends to teach the future Red Dirt pioneer to play guitar and take him to regional bluegrass festivals.
Along with his love of bluegrass, Flint’s musical influences ranged from 1990s rockers like Nirvana and Pearl Jam and Texas singer-songwriters like Guy Clark and Townes Van Zandt to jam bands like Phish and String Cheese Incident. to Red Dirt standouts like Tom Skinner and The Great Division.
Flint entered the Boohatch, the former Ada home studio of The Great Divide frontman, producer and Oklahoma Music Hall of Famer Mike McClure, to record his 2016 debut album, “I’m Not Okay.”
“He loved doing it – and you could tell. … He brought in this kind of Irish band – I mean, (they were) bluegrass, but they had old Irish instruments – and they did some really cool stuff. His original songs started to catch my ear, and he decided to make his album instead. He also recorded for other songwriters,” McClure told The Oklahoman.
“That was very indicative of Jake’s spirit: Man, if you needed something, he was there. … artists who hadn’t recorded yet.”
Flint recorded and released three more albums – 2018’s “Live and Not OK at Cain’s Ballroom”, 2020’s “Jake Flint” and 2021’s “Live and Socially Distanced at Mercury Lounge” – and was a featured performer on the Future Faces Show at the 2018 Texas Regional Radio Music Awards.
He recorded three singles on Texas Regional Radio Report with “Cowtown,” 2017’s “Long Road Back Home” in 2018 and “What’s Your Name” in 2020 and was named Breakout Artist of the Year at the We Are Tulsa Music Awards in 2019 .
He performed with his band and as a solo act at venues throughout Oklahoma, Texas and surrounding states and was included on the Sooner State festival lineup such as Woody Guthrie’s Folk Festival, Bob Childers’ Gypsy Cafe and Tom Skinner’s Skyline Fest. The latter two events are fundraisers for the Non-Profit Red Dirt Relief Fund, which counted Flint as a loyal supporter.
“When the pandemic started, he had started digging into video production and got a really quick knowledge of streaming. And he’s done a ton of streaming projects for all kinds of artists and organizations throughout the pandemic, including us. When we did our virtual Skinnerfest in 2020, he made a video and did the whole thing,” said Red Dirt Relief Fund Executive Director Katie Dale.
At this year’s Gypsy Cafe songwriter festival, she said Flint led the flow for the only stage he played on.
“He was a real go-getter. He was always building a side project, and his background was in petroleum field work. So, he was just a very hard worker,” Dale said. “He was also larger than life. He would light up a room easily and made tons of friends very easily. … He would go out of his way for people, just small kindnesses. I think that is why this is a devastating blow. ”
Dale said she has been in contact with the Flint family to offer condolences and financial assistance, if needed. There is no benefit or tribute concert planned at this time, but she expected there would be no problem filling a line if one is scheduled.
Oklahoma musicians pay tribute to singer-songwriter Red Dirt
Several musicians from Oklahoma have taken to Facebook to pay tribute to Flint in the past two days.
Blake Lankford, who is part of the songwriting group VIIDR – Seventh Day Rebellion which counted Flint among its members, wrote, “If there’s a heaven and they let me in, I know it’s because of s you went to bat for me, Jake.” Buffalo Rogers added “The world shines less without you in it,” while Travis Kidd called Flint “a true legend who will never be forgotten forever.”
“I’ve never met a new artist who was so loved and had so many fans. It takes you years to build that – and that’s what Jake had. He was willing to do anything for anyone…and he had a very good business mind. There’s only one Jake Flint,” said Brenda Cline, a Flint business consultant who was a manager and partner in a planned business venture.
“It’s a loss … for many – and we’re still just getting over the shock and disbelief of this. We’ve all lost friends, we’ve all lost family members loss, it’s life. But I don’t think I’ve ever been in such a terrible situation with losing someone and this cruel for Brenda, his wife. It is unbelievable to become a bride and a widow in a matter of hours. I can’t imagine what she’s going through.”
Flint’s wife, Brenda Wilson Flint, posted a video clip from their wedding to Facebook with the heartfelt message “I don’t understand. ”
Hosty uploaded his own video clip from the wedding that Flint captures in hopes of remembering it: happily singing to his new wife.
“When I was done, we all went out to the barn, and somebody had an acoustic guitar and people were passing it around. People were just singing around the campfire … and Jake sang to Brenda . And as he was singing, I’m going, ‘I’d rather record this,'” Hosty said.
“He was a great lyricist, he had a unique voice … and I think he would just want his music to be heard and his legacy to be remembered that way. And I think that .”
Services are pending.
