Former “American Idol” runner-up Willie Spence died following a car accident on Tuesday, according to a preliminary report from the Tennessee Highway Patrol.
Spence, 23, finished as runner-up to Chayce Beckham in the show’s 19th season, which aired last year.
The crash occurred at around 4 p.m. Tuesday in Marion County in East Tennessee, when Spence’s 2019 Jeep Cherokee “left the roadway” and collided with the back of a tractor trailer that was stopped on the shoulder of the east side of Interstate 24, at the 147 mile marker, the report states.
Both Spence, who is originally from Georgia, and the driver of the tractor trailer, who is 68 years old, were wearing seat belts, according to the report.
A spokesperson for the Tennessee Highway Patrol said the agency is investigating the incident and why Spence’s car veered off the road.
A representative for the Tennessee Department of Health did not immediately respond to an inquiry about the cause or time of death.
Just hours before the crash, Spence posted a video of himself singing “You Are My Hiding Place” on his Instagram page.