| History
If you asked Jim Van Hook what mattered most in life, he wouldn’t have listed chart placements, corporate titles, or industry accolades first. He would have named faith, family, and people.
Not as close seconds, but as the very heartbeat of his life. Everything Jim did flowed outward from those priorities.
Jim was the son of a Nazarene pastor, and faith shaped him early. He came to Trevecca from North Carolina in 1959 as a student, carrying with him both musical talent and a deep-rooted sense of calling. Trevecca did not simply educate Jim; it became part of his story. The student would one day return as professor, mentor and friend to generations.
At his core, Jim was a teacher. Long before boardrooms and recording studios, his calling took shape in the classrooms and rehearsal halls of Trevecca Nazarene University. As a young professor in the 1960s, he brought more than musical instruction. He brought belief—belief in students who were still discovering their gifts, belief that music was a calling as much as a craft, and belief that excellence and faith belonged together.
Former students recall that Jim had a way of seeing potential before others could name it. He challenged students musically, yes—but even more in character. Preparation mattered. Excellence mattered. But integrity mattered most.
Don Hastings met Jim in the fall of 1965 and served as his student assistant. Their time together included touring with the Men’s Glee Club and representing Trevecca at the Church of the Nazarene’s General Assembly. During one particularly noisy assembly, Jim quietly devised a solution. He instructed Don to coordinate with the A/V team. When the Trevecca Men’s Glee Club took the stage, the lights went dim. That caused the crowd to fall silent, and the music was finally heard.
“Jim thought outside the box. In fact, he didn’t even have a box.” — Don Hastings
That moment was more than stagecraft. It was Jim—creative, calm, resourceful, always focused on helping others shine. Their friendship deepened over the years. As Don reflected recently, “I miss you, friend. I’ll see you at The House.”
That same teacher’s heart followed Jim throughout his remarkable career. When he founded Brentwood Music with little more than faith and determination, he built it the same way he built students—patiently and intentionally. Brentwood grew into one of the most significant forces in Christian music publishing, not because Jim chased success, but because he cultivated people.
Songwriters, executives, and young professionals flourished under his encouragement. He celebrated others’ success without insecurity. He mentored generously. He created environments where talent could thrive without fear.
As president and CEO of Word Entertainment and later as founding dean of Belmont University’s Mike Curb College of Entertainment and Music Business, Jim once again merged classroom and calling. He believed the industry needed leaders formed not only with skill, but with wisdom and values.
Yet for all his accomplishments, Jim never confused achievement with meaning. His faith was the quiet center of everything. He served as a music minister, viewing worship not as performance but as offering. Music, for Jim, was always about pointing beyond itself—toward hope and toward God.
At the heart of Jim’s life was his family. His marriage to Susie was marked by devotion and shared faith. He was a proud father and grandfather, delighting in the stories and accomplishments of those he loved. Family was never secondary. It was central.
That family includes Jim’s children and their spouses and children—Brent, Susan Michelle, and their children Matthew and John David Van Hook; and Susan and Rod Riley, and grandchildren Anna and Jack Riley—as well as Jim’s sister, Ann Parham, and many beloved cousins, nieces, nephews, and extended family members.
Jim Van Hook’s legacy is not contained in titles or accolades. It lives in classrooms where students are still encouraged to lead with integrity. It lives in songs sung in churches around the world. It lives in professionals who learned that success is hollow unless it is shared.
The ripples of his life continue outward—through students, through music, through family, through faith. And they will, by God’s grace, continue for generations to come.