Behind the glittering lights and heartfelt melodies, country musicians often face a world of pressure, scrutiny, and challenges that fame brings.
From grueling schedules to navigating personal struggles in the public eye, the road to stardom can be as tough as it is rewarding.
We’re looking into the hardships some well-known country musicians face faced in the past years.
Garth Brooks
On 3 October, a lawsuit filed by “Jane Roe” accused Garth of sexual assault and battery. The plaintiff – who had worked for the 62-year-old Friends In Low Places crooner as a hair and makeup artist since 2017, after first being hired by his wife, singer Trisha Yearwood, in 1999 – alleged the incidents occurred in 2019. In a statement, the Grammy winner denied all allegations.
“For the last two months, I have been hassled to no end if I did not write a cheque for many millions of dollars,” he says. “Hush money is still hush money. In my mind, that means I am admitting to behaviour I am incapable of.”
Prior to the filing being made, an anonymous celebrity plaintiff – since revealed to be Garth – attempted to block her from making her allegations public. Fiercely denying the claims,
he filed a complaint as “John Doe”.
“We filed a suit against this person to speak out against extortion and defamation of character,” Garth says. “We filed it anonymously for the sake of families on both sides.”
The case is ongoing.
Naomi and Wynonna Judd
Mother-daughter duo Naomi and Wynonna may have been a roaring success, but their personal relationship was fragile.
Forming the Judds in 1982, they quickly climbed the charts. But finding herself with money for the first time after years of poverty, Wynonna soon spent it all. In 2003, she entered rehab for mone management.
Wynonna had been left to raise younger sister Ashley while their mum struggled to put a roof over their heads during their early years. It came as a shock to learn at age 30 that they had different fathers. She admitted the revelation was traumatising and her already-precarious relationship with her mother took another hit.
In April 2022, 76-year-old Naomi was found dead in her home in Tennessee. Ashley, 56, revealed she’d taken her own life following a long battle with depression and anxiety.
Naomi and Wynonna, 60, were never able to mend their rift. Naomi left behind a note that read, “Do not let Wy come to my funeral. She’s mentally ill.”
Cutting both daughters out of her will, she left her entire estimated fortune of $41 million to second husband Larry Strickland.
Keith Urban
He’s one of our most successful unsung exports, but things haven’t always been so rosy for Keith.
Born in Whangārei and raised just outside Brisbane by alcoholic father Robert, who died in 2015, he dropped out of high school with his sights set on Nashville.
Plagued by alcoholism and cocaine addiction, Keith describes the ’90s as a time of heavy substance abuse, though he admits it took a while to recognise he had a problem. In 1998, he checked into Cumberland Heights Treatment Centre in Nashville for the first of three eventual rehab stints.
“I didn’t drink like my dad did, so I compared everything to him,” Keith, 57, confessed in 2021. “But I was able to finally make the right choice for my life, that I wish my dad would have made.”
Four months after he married Nicole Kidman, 57, in June 2006, she staged an intervention when he fell off the wagon – this time, he checked into the Betty Ford Centre in California.
“I went off the rails,” he admits. “I hadn’t conceded to myself that I needed help and a new direction in my life. Nic’s intervention is something I was very, very blessed to have.”
Billy Ray Cyrus
Talk about an Achy Breaky Heart! A young Billy Ray found himself in quite the predicament while juggling relationships with Tish Finley and Kristin Luckey, who both fell pregnant.
Kristin gave birth to son Christopher Cody on 8 April 1992, while Tish welcomed daughter Destiny Hope – aka singer Miley Cyrus – seven months later, on 23 November 1992. Though Billy Ray has taken care of his son financially, he was raised by his mother in South Carolina.
Billy Ray went on to marry Tish, now 57, in December 1993, and the couple had two more children, son Braison, 30, and daughter Noah, 24. He also adopted Tish’s older kids, Brandi, 37, and Trace, 35.
The couple divorced in April 2022, revealing they’d been separated for more than two years.
Subsequently, Billy Ray, 63, married Australian singer Firerose, 35 – real name Johanna Rose Hodges – in October 2023. But their union was short-lived. Billy Ray filed for divorce the following May, citing irreconcilable differences and inappropriate marital conduct.
He sought an annulment, claiming the marriage was obtained by fraud, which was finalised on 5 August.
LeAnn Rimes
When affair rumours between Northern Lights co-stars LeAnn Rimes and Eddie Cibrian circulated in early 2009, the singer bore the brunt of the backlash.
Eddie issued a denial in March 2009, but by July, they’d each separated from their spouses. The next month, they made their debut as a couple.
Breaking her silence in 2010, LeAnn admitted, “I did one of the most selfish things that I possibly could do, in hurting someone else. I take responsibility for everything I’ve done, but I don’t regret the outcome.”
Despite the odds, LeAnn, now 42, and Eddie, 51, have been married since April 2011. She’s a doting stepmum to Eddie’s sons, Mason, 21, and Jake, 17.
However, in the spotlight since 13, the singer spent years battling anxiety and depression. The day after her 30th birthday in 2012, she checked into a treatment facility.
“I was in a very, very dark place,” she confesses.
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