Country Singer Wade Bowen Involved in Bus Crash While on Tour: ‘We Are Very Lucky’

The 47-year-old musician’s tour bus was hit by a car on Friday evening while traveling to Lubbock, Texas.

Wade Bowen performs in Nashville, Tenn., on Feb. 10, 2018. Jason Kempin/Getty Images

Texas country singer Wade Bowen and his band managed to perform at a scheduled concert in Lubbock on Saturday despite being involved in a bus crash the night before.

Bowen, 47, took to Instagram on Monday to recount the accident, sharing that his tour bus was struck by a car shortly after departing Austin on Friday evening.

“Thankfully we are all ok,” the Waco native wrote alongside a series of photos of the damaged bus.

“I’m so blessed to have the band and crew I do,” he continued. “Everyone came together and figured out how to make it to our next show in Lubbock and pull off a magical night.”

Bowen went on to express gratitude to those who helped ensure the success of his band’s show at Cooks Garage, a bar and music venue in Lubbock.

“In spite of everything, we had one of my favorite shows ever in the town that started it all for me,” he wrote.

“Thank you to all of the police officers, firemen, tow truckers, and everyone that took good care of us and our situation. We are very lucky ... to be safe and also to live this life! Call your mom.”

Bowen is slated to continue his tour with upcoming concerts in cities across the state, including Portland and Marble Falls later this month, followed by shows in Gonzales, San Antonio, and Stephenville in April.

He will also perform in select cities across New Mexico, Nebraska, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, and New York in the coming months before returning to his hometown of Waco, Texas, in August for a concert headlined by the country music bands Cross Canadian Ragweed and the Turnpike Troubadours.

Born in Texas

Bowen launched his music career in Lubbock in the late 1990s. While attending Texas Tech University, he and his friend, Matt Miller, formed the band West 84—named after U.S. Route 84, a highway that runs through Texas—according to his alma mater, Sigma Chi.

In 1999, the group self-released the album “Just For Fun” before putting out “Try Not To Listen” in 2002, which earned the band a following throughout the state.

The following year, the band released its first live album, “The Blue Light Live,” recorded at Lubbock’s historic music venue of the same name.

“The Blue Light’s a small place, but they’d pack them in there for us,” Bowen told the Sigma Chi Foundation in 2021, recalling his time at the venue.

“There were nights where it was nobody when we first started. Then there were nights where they were sneaking them in the back door and stuff,” the country singer added.

“We made 100 bucks and thought it was a million dollars. Then they started paying us $125 and thought we had something really cool going, and we did.”

Bowen later soared to national prominence with the release of “Lost Hotel” in 2006 and “If We Ever Make It Home” in 2008, solidifying his place in the “red dirt” country music genre. His most recent album, “Flyin,” debuted in May 2024.

“I wanted a different kind of energy for this record, a different sound than y’all have really heard from me before,” the singer shared via Instagram at the time.

“I feel like the word ‘Flyin’ represents all of that for me—something that feels positive and good. I hope y’all feel that when you listen.”

In addition to his music endeavors, Bowen is dedicated to supporting people in need in his hometown through his nonprofit organization, the Bowen Family Foundation.

“At the Bowen Family Foundation, we believe that Music Heals. With that in mind, we’re dedicated to the mission of helping to heal the children and families in and around Central Texas,” Bowen said in a statement via the charity’s website.

“Together, we can help them get the love, support, resources and opportunities they need to create better lives for themselves. Because we believe that is what community is all about.”