Jeremy Tepper, the musician, journalist, record-label founder and SiriusXM programmer who shaped the identity of Outlaw Country, died in New York in June 2024 at 60. Contemporary reports attributed his death to a heart attack. His legacy was not just a radio channel: Tepper helped build a broad musical community that made room for country roots and legends as well as artists beyond the genre’s narrow boundaries.
Who was Jeremy Tepper?
Tepper was a musician and music journalist before becoming a radio programmer. He fronted the World Famous Blue Jays and founded the independent label Diesel Only Records in 1990. His career connected performance, journalism, independent releases and broadcasting.
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What was his role at SiriusXM?
Tepper joined SiriusXM as an on-air personality in 2001 and became format manager of Outlaw Country in 2004. TheWrap reported that he spent the following two decades with the company. His work was also associated with Road Dog Trucking.
SiriusXM credited Tepper with shaping the identities of both Outlaw Country and Willie’s Roadhouse. The company described him as a beloved colleague whose dedication and innovative spirit had profoundly influenced the organization. SiriusXM’s current Outlaw Country description presents the channel as a home for “country’s roots and legends” alongside “today’s outsiders that just won’t be fenced in.” That is the channel’s present-day framing, not a quotation attributed to Tepper.
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- Recorded at Nashville's historic RCA Studio A, with additional production at The Castle and Blackbird Studio, Traveller was produced by Dave Cobb (Sturgill Simpson, Jason Isbell) and recorded by Vance Powell (Jack White)
How did Tepper shape outlaw country?
Tepper treated outlaw country as a living musical community rather than a fixed revival of the 1970s. The Washington Post described his decision to bring Mojo Nixon onto Outlaw Country as an example of that openness. Its account of the Outlaw Country Cruise likewise depicts a deliberately inclusive bill where established performers and lesser-known artists shared the stage.
That approach helps explain why his influence extended beyond programming a genre format. He made space for artists who did not fit a narrow idea of country, while keeping the music’s roots and traditions in view. Following Mojo Nixon’s death, musician Steve Earle recalled Tepper performing one of Nixon’s songs aboard the cruise: “The only time I ever saw Jeremy perform, as a singer, was a Mojo song the week that Mojo died. We were still at sea, and Mojo was still on the boat, and Jeremy got on stage and killed it.”
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- Released: 2020-06-26...
- Format: Vinyl...
- Format: Vinyl...
- Genre: Pop...
- Genre: Pop...
What was Diesel Only Records?
Diesel Only Records was Tepper’s independent label, founded in 1990. A notable early release was Big Rig Deluxe, a 1996 compilation featuring artists including Marty Stuart, Buck Owens and Steve Earle. The label’s wider roster included Amy Allison, Ween, Will Rigby and Tammy Faye Starlite. The compilation marked an important point in the label’s history, but Tepper’s contribution also lay in the broader range of music and artists he supported.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How did Jeremy Tepper die?
Tepper died in New York in June 2024, aged 60. TheWrap and other contemporary reports attributed his death to a heart attack. His age and death details were reported at the time; no additional cause-of-death details are established here.
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- Bell Bottom Country is Lainey Wilson's fourth studio album
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Sources
- TheWrap, for Tepper’s SiriusXM chronology and reported death.
- MLive, for career background and the format-manager date.
- SiriusXM, for the channel’s current description and the company tribute.
- Variety, syndicated by Yahoo, for Diesel Only Records and Big Rig Deluxe.
- The Washington Post, for Tepper’s curation and Steve Earle’s recollection.
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