NEED TO KNOW
- Daniel Williams, the former drummer of the Devil Wears Prada band, shared images from inside the cockpit of a private jet that crashed in San Diego, killing him
- Dave Shapiro, a talent agent and owner of Sound Talent Group (STG), also died in the plane crash
- The total fatalities are still unknown
Daniel Williams, the former drummer for metalcore band The Devil Wears Prada, shared images from inside the Cessna 550 aircraft shortly before it went down. Williams and Dave Shapiro, 42, a talent agent and owner of Sound Talent Group (STG), died in the crash in a San Diego neighborhood on Thursday, May 22.
The images, shared on Williams’ Instagram Stories, showed the cockpit of the small aircraft. One image read, “Hey. Hey…you…look at me…I’m the (co)pilot now.”
A second image was captioned “Here we goooooo.” The third and final image read “flying back with @davevelocity.”
Williams had stepped away from the music industry at least eight years ago, according to his X account. In a recent post, he announced that he had accepted a job with Apple on May 14.
“I’m very excited to share that I’ve accepted a software engineering role at Apple,” he wrote. “It’s been really tough to say goodbye to my friends and colleagues of nearly 8 years at GoPro, but it’s time for my next chapter. It’s time to help build the future.”
In an Instagram post, the band paid tribute to Williams with images of the band throughout the years, as well as an image of Williams behind his drum kit. “♥️ no words. We owe you everything. Love you forever,” the group captioned the post.
The band first made a name for themselves in the mid 2000s with their 2006 album Dear Love: A Beautiful Discord. Formed in Ohio, the group chose their name before the famous 2006 film of the same name starring Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway was released, per last.fm.
“We are devastated by the loss of our co-founder, colleagues and friends,” a spokesperson for Shapiro’s STG wrote in a statement to Billboard. “Our hearts go out to their families and to everyone impacted by today’s tragedy. Thank you so much for respecting their privacy at this time.”’
Williams’ father, Larry, told TMZ that their family is certain he was on the plane and there were no survivors from the crash. However, he said they have not officially received confirmation from authorities.
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PEOPLE contacted the FAA for confirmation on the names aboard the Cessna but has not received a response.
The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating.
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