Big Daddy Weave artist Jay Weaver dead at age 42 after COVID battle

Jay Weaver, a musician with the contemporary Christian band Big Daddy Weave, has died following a battle with COVID-19, his brother announced.

The bassist, who also performed vocals for the group, was 42.

His brother, Mike Weaver, said in an Instagram video late Sunday that “Jay went to be with Jesus just a couple hours ago.”

Jay and Mike Weaver helped launch Big Daddy Weave in 1998 in Mobile, Alabama. Known for songs such as “Redeemed” and “Jesus I Believe,” the band has released eight studio albums that landed within the top 20 on the U.S. Christian music charts, including three that cracked the top 10.

Mike Weaver, who is the band’s lead singer, praised fans for supporting his brother during an “uphill battle.”

Jay, whose given name was Jason Weaver, was diagnosed with diabetes years earlier, and had both feet amputated in 2016 after he contracted an infection, according to the website Christian Post.

“The Lord used him in such a mighty way out on the road for so many years,” Mike Weaver said Sunday. “Anybody who’s in contact with him just how real his faith in Jesus was. I believe that even though COVID may have taken his last breath, Jesus was right there to catch him.”

Others on the Christian music scene shared their condolences following Weaver’s death.

“Love you guys! Prayers for you all and your families,” fellow artist Phil Wickham commented on Mike Weaver’s Instagram post.

Gospel singer Danny Gokey, meanwhile, wrote that his “heart breaks” for the family.

“Even though we know they’re in heaven it’s still difficult at times to live here without them,” Gokey commented. “Prayers to you and your whole family. Love you all. Mourning with his fam and rejoicing that he’s in the arms of Jesus!”