“I’m the (co)pilot now”- The Devil Wears Prada’s Daniel Williams’ final words gets highlighted after fatal San Diego Plane crash

Daniel Williams, formerly of The Devil Wears Prada, died in a fatal San Diego plane crash on May 22, 2025. The drummer was in the Cessna 550 co-pilot seat before the crash, with several other passengers in the plane, including music agent David Shapiro, who also died in the crash.

Just before the crash, Williams shared a picture referring to himself as the co-pilot on the plane on his Instagram stories (now no longer available):

"Hey. Hey… you… look at me… I’m the (co)pilot now."

The words have been highlighted online by grieving fans, contrasting the gaiety of the late drummer and software engineer's comments early in the flight to the tragic end of the flight.

Publications such as People Magazine, CBS 8, and Rock Feed, among others, have all highlighted the last words of the drummer as well. It is not officially clear whether or not the drummer was the actual co-pilot of the plane. It is also not clear at the moment as to who was piloting the plane.

The investigation into the incident is still ongoing and no official explanation or verification on what led to the crash has been provided as of the writing of this article.

According to CBS 8, the plane had the tail number N666DS and was registered to the Daviator LLC, a company owned by David Shapiro. The company is registered in Alaska.

The San Diego Police Department shared its brief statement regarding the crash:

"UPDATE: Approx. 100 residents evacuated after aircraft crash near Sculpin St & Santo Rd. At least 2 confirmed dead, 8 injured, ~10 buildings damaged. Evacs & road closures remain. NTSB en route. Call 619-531-2000 if you find debris or jet fuel."

As per reports, the plane crashed near the Tierrasanta neighbourhood in San Diego, in the residential area of Murphy Canyon at 3:45 a.m. The crash has so far at least three confirmed fatalities, with Sound Talent Group, the employer of Shapiro, confirming three of their employees are dead from the crash to the Associated Press.

Daniel Williams mourned by The Devil Wears Prada and other musicians

Daniel Williams was mourned by his former The Devil Wears Prada bandmates, who have posted a brief remembrance post in honour of the late drummer on their official Facebook:

"no words. We owe you everything. Love you forever."

Other tributes came from the bands The Word Alive, the drummer Lucas Holland, and more. Daniel Williams had been a software engineer for Go Pro at the time of the crash, although reports suggest he was looking into a new opportunity at Apple at the time of writing:

"The Word Alive: RIP to our friends Dave Shapiro, Daniel Williams and the others involved in the plane crash this morning. Dave was was of the most influential and positive forces in the our music scene and beyond, and Dan was one of the most influential and positive forces behind the kit RIP."

Lucas Holland: I just FaceTimed Daniel, what a devastating loss. RIP Daniel Williams. we did a bunch of tours together & when I was the super ‘young guy’ on the road, he always treated me really well.

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Daniel Williams was part of The Devil Wears Prada band from its inception in 2005 to 2016, staying for the band's first five studio albums. The late drummer was one of the founding members of the band, alongside Jeremy DePoyster, Mike Hranica, James Baney, and Andy Trick.

Williams and his band members first achieved commercial success with their second studio album, Plagues. The band went on to achieve major success with their subsequent albums, particularly With Roots Above and Branches Below and Dead Throne. The last studio album by the band that Daniel Williams was part of was 8:18. It is unclear as to why Daniel Williams left the band, but the parting between him and the band was fairly amicable.

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