Kellie Pickler’s Husband Kyle Jacobs Dead After Apparent Suicide at Age 49

Kellie Pickler‘s husband Kyle Jacobs has died in what authorities believe is a suicide. He was 49.

The Nashville Police Department confirms in a statement shared with PEOPLE that the Department of Emergency Communications was alerted to a home on Friday at 1:21 p.m. local time.

Police and the Nashville Fire Department arrived at the location and found the songwriter “deceased from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound,” they said in the statement.

“His death is being investigated as an apparent suicide.”

The Dancing with the Stars alum, 36, told authorities that she woke up shortly before but couldn’t find Jacobs. She and her personal assistant called the police after they couldn’t open the door to a room in the house, according to the statement.

In his final Instagram post shared the day before his death, Kyle Jacobs celebrated a career win and shared a photo that announced Lee Brice’s Hey World becoming certified platinum.

Jacobs relocated from Minneapolis, Minnesota, to Nashville in 2000, according to Music City Hitmakers.

He notably penned Garth Brooks’ 2007 hit “More Than A Memory and Tim McGraw’s “Still.”

He has also worked with well-known artists like Kelly Clarkson, Randy Travis, Scott McCreery, Josh Kelley, and Clay Walker.

Throughout his career, Jacobs won a CMA Award, an ACM Award, and was nominated for a Grammy Award.

Pickler and Jacobs wed in a surprise ceremony on Jan. 1, 2011. They do not share any children.

The couple, who had been dating since 2008, got engaged on June 15, 2010, when Jacobs popped the question on a Florida beach.

“It was the most spiritual moment.” Pickler, who got her start on American Idol, said of the proposal. “We would’ve gotten married that night had there been a preacher walking by!”