American country-music performers Patsy Cline, Cowboy Copas, and Hawkshaw Hawkins were killed when their PA-24 crashed shortly after takeoff in Camden, Tennessee.

Country music, also known as country and western or simply country, is a music genre, known for its ballads and dance tunes, identifiable by both folk lyrics and harmonies accompanied by banjos, fiddles, harmonicas, and many types of guitar; either acoustic, electric, steel, or resonator guitars.

Patsy Cline was an American singer. One of the most influential vocalists of the 20th century, she was known as one of the first country music artists to successfully cross over into pop music. Cline had several major hits during her eight-year recording career, including two number-one hits on the Billboard Hot Country and Western Sides chart.

Lloyd Estel Copas, known by his stage name Cowboy Copas, was an American country music singer. He was popular from the 1940s until his death in the 1963 plane crash that also killed country stars Patsy Cline and Hawkshaw Hawkins. Copas was a member of the Grand Ole Opry.

Harold Franklin "Hawkshaw" Hawkins was an American country music singer popular from the 1950s into the early 1960s. He was known for his rich, smooth vocals and music drawn from blues, boogie and honky tonk. At 6 feet 5 inches (1.96 m) tall, Hawkins had an imposing stage presence, and he dressed more conservatively than some other male country singers. Hawkins died in the 1963 plane crash that also killed country stars Patsy Cline and Cowboy Copas. He was a member of the Grand Ole Opry and was married to country star Jean Shepard.