JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Joe Starkey, a musician and sound engineer who was well known in Jacksonville’s music scene, died Wednesday night in what police called a “road rage incident.”
He was 62.
The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office said just before 9 p.m., it received a call about a shooting on St. Johns Bluff Road S., near Atlantic Boulevard.
When JSO arrived, officers found a man lying on the road with at least one gunshot wound. Police said after talking to several witnesses and the shooter, who turned himself in, it appeared that a road rage incident led to the shooting.
Damien Starkey, Joe Starkey’s son, identified his father as the man who was killed.
Damien Starkey said his “heart feels completely shattered” after the loss of his dad.
Damien Starkey, a well-known musician, songwriter and producer who was a member of the band Puddle of Mudd and who has written and produced for big acts like Saliva, Daughtry and Avril Lavigne, said his dad was the reason why he got into music.
“He taught me how to play. He taught me how to sing. He believed in me long before I ever believed in myself. Every part of my path in music began with him. He was always at our shows running sound making sure we were at our best. He supported every dream I chased and he worked with me in ways that reached far beyond music,” Damien Starkey wrote in a Facebook post. “He was my father, my friend, my foundation and my biggest fan. Losing him like this has taken the air out of me. I am broken and trying to make sense of something that makes no sense at all.”
Musician and producer Damien Starkey (right) shared photos of his father Joe Starkey on social media following his father’s death in a road rage shooting. (Copyright 2025 by WJXT News4JAX – All rights reserved.)Damien Starkey (left) with his father Joe Starkey in the studio. (Copyright 2025 by WJXT News4JAX – All rights reserved.)
Damien Starkey told News4JAX he was set to perform in a reunion show with his band Burn Season next week, and his father was supposed to be the sound engineer.
Dozens of tributes to Joe Starkey were posted on Facebook following his death.
One called him a “longtime icon of the Jax music scene,” and others noted he had been involved in music for over 40 years. Others talked about how helpful he was and how knowledgeable he was about music.
JSO told News4JAX on Friday that the incident is an ongoing criminal investigation, and all witnesses have been interviewed. The shooter has cooperated with police, JSO said, but they have not been arrested, although that could change.
Damien Starkey said it has become his mission to make sure the person who pulled the trigger knows they didn’t just kill “some guy.”
“It’s way, way more than that. Way bigger than that,” he said. “You killed somebody who is irreplaceable, and that didn’t deserve it. And you know what, you’re gonna know who you killed.”
The State Attorney’s Office is reviewing the case.
A GoFundMe was created to support his wife.
Copyright 2025 by WJXT News4JAX – All rights reserved.