Country music legend dies at 67 after fighting for his life for weeks

Bill Cody, the longtime WSM Radio host and Grand Ole Opry announcer, died Tuesday night at age 67 after several weeks in hospital for organ failure. He had been awaiting a heart and kidney transplant after three weeks in the ICU. The station described him as a singular presence on WSM-AM Nashville for more than three decades.

Cody joined WSM in 1994 and hosted Coffee, Country & Cody for more than 30 years. He was also a longtime Grand Ole Opry announcer. Tributes from artists like Randy Travis, Dierks Bentley and Jo Dee Messina underscored his impact on the genre.