When Chad Sellers passed away unexpectedly in August 2023, the Nashville songwriter and producer left behind more than unfinished songs — he left behind a voice, a vision, and a body of work that felt too honest not to be heard.
That work is now In A Heartbeat, a posthumous folk-Americana EP completed by Chad’s family and closest collaborators, including producer Adam Sickler and longtime co-writer Bryan Ruby. At the emotional center of the project is “If I Were The Wind,” a song Chad began recording before his death and later finished by his eldest son, Gavin, marking his first time ever stepping behind a microphone.
For Chad’s widow, Birdie Sellers, the release of the project represents both continuation and gratitude.
“Grief doesn’t really get easier — you just learn how to carry it,” she tells Celeb Secrets in an exclusive interview. “But the kids and I have come a long way. We’re thriving, not just surviving.”
Before his passing, Chad had quietly begun shifting his creative focus away from radio-forward country toward stripped-down storytelling rooted in folk and Americana — music that prioritized lyrics, vulnerability, and emotional clarity. Songs like “Kids of Your Own,” which Birdie describes as deeply autobiographical, now feel less like compositions and more like personal letters left behind.
Hearing Gavin complete his father’s final vocal, she says, was one of the most surreal moments of the entire process. “I honestly thought I was sent the wrong track,” she shares. “He sounded so much like Chad.”
What followed wasn’t closure, but something closer to preservation. The project became a way for Chad’s family not to move on from him, but to move forward with him — keeping his voice present through the music he didn’t get to finish himself.
Below, Birdie Sellers opens up about love, loss, legacy, watching her son carry his father’s voice, and what it means to continue forward when someone you love doesn’t get to. Keep scrolling the read Celeb Secrets’ full Q&A and don’t forget to let us know if you’re loving In A Heartbeat by either leaving a reaction at the bottom of the post or by sliding into our DMs on Instagram at @celebsecretscountry.
Celeb Secrets Country: Before we dive into the music, how are you really doing right now, and what does it mean to you to see Chad’s work being shared with the world in this way?
Birdie Sellers: “Grief is not linear, and I think the hardest reality to face is that it doesn’t really get easier, you just learn how to carry it. But, the kids and I have come a long way in the last two and a half years. It definitely took time, but I like to think that we are thriving, not just surviving these days. To see Chad‘s work shared in this way is truly an honor. To be able to make someone’s dream come true – even posthumously – well, I don’t know how many people get to do that.”
CSC: When you first heard the finished version of In A Heartbeat, what was the very first emotion that hit you, and did it surprise you?
BS: “Gratitude. I am so grateful that we still have a way to hear his voice, that we have insight into his thoughts and feelings and the things he was wrestling with, that he wrote a song for our kids. Almost every line of ‘Kids of Your Own’ has a real story behind it. What a gift. And I am beyond grateful to Bryan Ruby and Adam Sickler, and all the artists and writers that helped bring this to fruition.”
CSC: If Chad were sitting here with us today, what do you think he’d say about this project finally being released?
BS: “He would be blown away and humbled by the response, and so proud of Gavin for stepping up and finishing ‘If I Were the Wind.’ I think he’d actually be speechless (which he wasn’t often) to see how everyone has come together to finish this project. We often don’t get to see the impact that we have on others, and I know that he would be deeply touched that there are so many people that put in effort to make this happen. I don’t think he really understood how much he meant to the writers and artists he worked with.”
CSC: Chad started this EP as a deeply personal project. When he first told you about it, what was the vibe he was going for and the story he was trying to tell with this release?
BS: “Chad was quiet about this project initially – preferring to focus the spotlight on all the other artists he worked with as he ruminated over what direction to take his own artistry. He always thought so deeply about the storytelling and lyrical pieces of every song he wrote, and this project was no different. Instead of going for the ‘country radio’ vibe he often chased as a songwriter and producer for other artists, his mission here was to capture a more stripped down vibe that lived in the Folk-Americana world – letting the lyrics and story of each song shine. This EP is authentically Chad, and it’s a masterpiece of songwriting that the world deserves to hear.
CSC: “If I Were The Wind” is such an intimate, tender song, especially knowing Chad’s vocals were completed by your son Gavin. Can you walk us through the moment you first heard his voice on the track?
BS: “When I first heard the track, I thought Bryan had sent me the wrong cut! He sounds so much like Chad, I really didn’t believe it was Gavin. Gavin is not a singer, and was nervous going into the studio – he didn’t let me come because I was going to make him more nervous. As I have listened to it over and over again, I am so proud of him, and love the quiet tone of his voice, it is just pure and honest – he’s not “trying”.
CSC: What was it like watching Gavin step into the studio, not just as Chad’s son, but as someone continuing his dad’s voice and spirit through music?
Bryan Ruby (co-writer): “This was my favorite moment of the entire record. That day in the studio was incredible. On the production side, we were worried if we’d be able to pull it off with someone who lacked studio vocal experience. Those worries disappeared completely the moment Gavin stepped in front of the mic. Gavin absolutely crushed it – and it was outright magical to watch him carry on the legacy his dad left behind.”
CSC: Did working on this project together as a family change the way you grieve, heal, or even remember Chad?
BS: “I definitely think it helped the healing process. At some point after someone dies, you have to go back to your life. The grief is not as constant, and it would be easy to compartmentalize it and put it away and not continue to face it. Working on this project kept bringing it to the surface and requiring us to face it, sit with it. I still can’t listen to the music without crying – sometimes a few silent tears, sometimes violent sobs. That’s not a bad thing, I think it’s good to remember, it’s good to feel it, and it’s good to miss this person that you spent the majority of your life with.”
L-R: Scott Griffin, Fran Litterski, Dan Harrison, Samson Sellers, Bridie Sellers, Gavin Sellers, Adam Sickler, Bryan Ruby
CSC: So many people in Nashville describe Chad not just as talented, but deeply generous. What’s something about his heart that you think fans or listeners might not know, but should?
BS: “Chad was blunt and direct, and sometimes that came across as harsh. He could be an ass***le sometimes. But he was one of the most empathetic people I have ever met, and that dichotomy was really tender. Despite a sometimes rough demeanor, he would do anything for people. Years ago, a friend of mine lost his brother in a freak accident. Chad had met my friend but didn’t know him well. But as I was telling him about it, I looked over and he had tears streaming down his face. Another example is a high school friend, which he was estranged from, had fallen on hard times. He gave him a job, let him stay in a spare room in our house, and even gave him a car. He didn’t expect anything in return. That is just the kind of guy he was. If he had something to offer, he did.”
CSC: This project came together because of the Nashville community rallying around your family. What has that support meant to you personally during this journey?
BS: “The support has been incredible – from close friends, to people in my local community, to the songwriter community. And farther reaching to the community we built back in Iowa. It doesn’t take big grand gestures for people to feel supported, though I do consider those involved in this project to have made some pretty grand gestures. At the end of the day, I think we all just want to be seen. And grief demands a witness. Death is awkward – people that haven’t been through the loss of a partner / parent at a young age can’t really relate. It would be easy to shy away. I would love people to know that we just want you to check in, to recognize the loss, and to say “I know you are not ok right now, but you will be.”
CSC: Were there moments during this process that reminded you just how deeply Chad impacted people — maybe in ways you didn’t even realize while he was here?
BS: “Absolutely. It started at his celebration of life, hearing these musicians get up and talk about how Chad was the first person that really believed in them, or saw something in them. That’s the kind of legacy that doesn’t go away. He knew talent when he saw it.”
CSC: What did it mean to see collaborators like Bryan Ruby, Adam Sickler, and others step in not just as creatives, but as caretakers of Chad’s work?
BS: “Bryan was one of the first artists that was in and out of my house when Chad started songwriting. After Chad died, it felt like Bryan became a part of our family in a way, and a big brother to Gavin. I had never met Adam, but I know how deeply personal this project was for him, that it wasn’t always easy as he was working through his grief. They have been amazing stewards of Chad‘s legacy and we would not have been able to do any of this without them.”
CSC: Grief can feel isolating, but music has a way of connecting people. Did finishing this EP feel more like closure, healing, or continuation? Or all three?
BS: “I’m not really sure. Working on the project has been hard – forcing me to confront the loss over and over, but I think that was healing. I hope it’s not closure – I hope we always miss him and feel like there’s an empty spot in our lives. I think continuation is right. Continuing his legacy, continuing his project, continuing to hear his voice.”
CSC: What’s something Chad taught you about love, faith, or resilience that you carry with you now more than ever?
BS: “In his writings, I found a line “the thing they don’t tell you is that you never stop growing up”. When I Grow Up hits me pretty hard because of that. Chad was never afraid to reinvent himself. To make the best of the situation he was in. To find the path. That is what I carry forward as we work towards our own new path.”
CSC: What does honoring Chad’s legacy look like moving forward beyond this EP?
BS: “We will continue to promote and celebrate his music. But one thing that has been on my heart since he died was to create a scholarship fund for seniors in the cross country program at the high school we graduated from. I haven’t pulled the trigger on that, but I think that is the next step to ensure we are honoring his legacy. Music was his most recent passion, but running was his first and enduring passion from being a high school and college athlete, to founding and coaching a youth cross country team. He made an impact on the lives of countless young athletes and I want to continue to make that impact.”
CSC: And finally, if Chad could leave listeners with one message through this EP, what do you think it would be?
BS: “From ‘Bird on a Wire’ — ‘I don’t want to miss one sunrise.’ This is so poignant in light of his death. He surely didn’t expect his life to end so prematurely when he wrote that song. Now, more than ever, I think he would want listeners to appreciate the beauty in the life around them, even if it isn’t perfect. Don’t take it for granted.”
LISTEN TO “IN A HEARTBEAT” HERE:
