Naomi Judd cause of death LATEST – Inside tragic life of singer from struggle with depression to troubled granddaughter
LEGENDARY singer Naomi Judd passed away this weekend at age 76 after leading an iconic but tragic life, her daughters announced.
Daughters Ashley and Wynonna broke down into tears at the Country Music Hall of Fame induction where Naomi was supposed to be honored.
The country singer, half of the famous duo The Judds, battled with depression throughout most of her life and detailed her struggle with mental health in a heartbreaking interview before her death.
The musician also faced family problems as her granddaughter, Grace Pauline Kelley, has been in and out of jail since her eight-year sentence for drugs in 2016.
Her daughters released a statement on Saturday regarding her death, saying, “Today we sisters experienced a tragedy.”
“We lost our beautiful mother to the disease of mental illness,” the statement continued.
“We are shattered. We are navigating profound grief and know that as we loved her, she was loved by her public.
“We are in unknown territory,” the statement concluded.
The Judds were to be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame on Sunday, May 1, 2022.
Read our Naomi Judd live blog for the very latest news and updates…
If you or someone you know is affected by any of the issues raised in this story, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-TALK (8255) or text Crisis Text Line at 741741.
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Final tour
In 2011, The Judds completed what was billed as a farewell tour.
However, they announced a 10-date “Final Tour” earlier this year that was scheduled to start in September.
Martina McBride was set to join the duo on select dates.
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Judd’s chilling message
Judd shared a message of her own from her book in 2016.
“I have told my story. Now you know and you can tell yours,” she said.
“You’re not alone. I am still here.”
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Strickland’s message
At the time of the 2016 interview with ABC, when her book was being released and Judd was discussing her battle publicly, Judd’s husband Larry Strickland shared a message for those with friends or family who suffer from depression.
“Get ready to walk that path with them, because they’re gonna need, they’re gonna need you every minute,” Strickland said.
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Heartbreaking interview, conclusion
“We all have this inner child, and I needed, for the first time in my life, to realize that I got a raw deal, OK, now I’m a big girl. Put on your big girl pants and deal with it.”
“I started in therapy and I call it radical acceptance,” Judd said. “Every day I exercised.”
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Heartbreaking interview, part two
Judd said her struggles stemmed from being molested by a family member as a child.
“I think that’s one of the reasons I wanted to write the book … because I never acknowledged all the bad stuff that people did to me,” she said.
Judd didn’t have immediate family members there to support her, she said, so she had only herself to rely on.
“I had to realize that in a way I had to parent myself,” Judd said.
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Heartbreaking interview
In a 2016 interview with ABC’s Robin Roberts, Judd revealed the “completely debilitating and life-threatening” depression she battled.
When asked why she was willing to talk publicly about her battle, Judd said, “because what I’ve been through is extreme.”
“Because it was so deep and so completely debilitating and life-threatening and because I have processed and worked so hard for these last four years.”
Judd recalls thinking, “If I live through this, I want someone to be able to see that they can survive.”
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County Music Hall of Fame, part two
“Wynonna was the lead singer with a husky, expressive voice, who could growl with bluesy intensity or articulate heartache with tender sensitive,” The County Music Hall of Fame explained.
“Naomi provided harmony, wit, and a sashaying stage presence that engaged audiences.”
“Between 1984 and 1991, the Judds scored a remarkable twenty Top Ten hits—including fourteen #1s. They also won five Grammys, nine CMA awards, and seven ACM awards.”
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Country Music Hall of Fame
The Judds were set to be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame on Sunday.
The organization explained the decision to induct the duo on its website saying, “The Judds helped take country back to its roots in the 1980s with lean, tuneful songs influenced by traditional folk music, acoustic blues, and family harmony acts.”
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Ashley Judd’s recent accident, continued
Along with a series of pictures of the hospital nurses, videos of her trying to walk after surgery, and a snap of her dad, she shared a lengthy message: “Dear Friends, Ubuntu. I am because we are.
“I want to give my deepest and most vulnerable thanks to Sunninghill Hospital in Johannesburg, South Africa, for making split-second decisions upon my arrival. I arrived to them from DRC in terrible shape and my leg had no pulse,” she revealed.
She concluded her lengthy post, saying: “I’m very thankful to all of the experts, including that expert pictured, my Pop, who is rubbing my foot to remind my foot while it still cannot move that it is connected to my body. I am up and around already.”
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Ashley Judd’s recent accident
In April of last year, Ashley Judd revealed that she almost lost her leg after a terrible fall in the Congo rainforest.
She said her leg had “no pulse” and “desperately needed a blood transfusion” after a 55-hour rescue in Congo.
The actress said that she shattered her leg after falling over a tree.
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Wynonna’s solo career
After disbanding in 1991 due to Naomi’s health concerns, eldest daughter Wynonna went solo.
Her recognizable solo songs are She Is His Only Need, I Saw The Light, No One Else On Earth, and To Be Loved By You.
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Wynonna’s struggles with depression, continued
Wynonna also said that she has “thoughts all the time about how hard this life is.”
“When you live on a farm you think, ‘Oh, I could just jump in a lake,’” Wynonna said.
“But then I think I’ve got to stick around for my grandkids and make more music… A mentor once said to me, ‘Don’t leave until the miracle happens.’”
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Wynonna’s struggles with depression
Naomi’s daughter and musical partner has also stated that she struggles with mental illness.
“I have thoughts where I say to myself, ‘This is too much,’ and then I call somebody,” she told Page Six.
“I literally will call somebody because I have been stuck in my sadness where I didn’t and we have to reach out and that’s been the hardest thing for me because I’m not good at asking for help.”
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Carrie Underwood’s tribute, continued
“This next song goes out to everybody who has ever lost someone that they loved, which is everybody,” Underwood said before her emotional performance, according to Music Mayhem.
“I feel like that one of the few human experiences that we all share, but just because the people that we love are not here with us does not mean that they are not here with us and that does not mean that you will not see them again someday.
“If you guys are thinking about anybody, I want you to get your phones out, get a lighter out, anything that shines light, let’s light up this place in memory of all those that we miss.
“I know all of country music will be lighting something up for Ms. Naomi Judd.”
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Carrie Underwood’s tribute
Country star Carrie Underwood wrote a message to honor Judd on social media saying, “Country music lost a true legend … sing with the angels, Naomi!!! We’re all sending up prayers for the Judd family today.”
During her headlining performance at Stagecoach festival on Saturday, Underwood dedicated her performance of emotional song See You Again to Judd.
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What did Naomi do before she was a singer?
After Naomi split with her ex-husband Michael Ciminella, she moved to California with her daughters.
Naomi began attending nursing school at the College of Marin before she and Wynonna created The Judds.
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Maren Morris saw Naomi ‘just a few short weeks ago’
Fellow country singer Maren Morris voiced her condolences, saying she was honored to see Naomi weeks ago.
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Were The Judds sisters?
When The Judds first rose to fame, they were mistaken for sisters because Naomi was so young-looking.
In reality, the duo consisted of Naomi and her daughter Wynonna.
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How old was Naomi Judd when she died?
Naomi Judd was born in 1946.
She was 76 when she passed away.
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What was Naomi’s cause of death?
In the statement released to The Associated Press, Wynonna and Ashley Judd wrote: “Today we sisters experienced a tragedy. We lost our beautiful mother to the disease of mental illness.”
“We are shattered. We are navigating profound grief and know that as we loved her, she was loved by her public.”
“We are in unknown territory,” the two daughters said.
The details of Naomi’s cause of death are unclear at this time.
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Ashley and Wynonna break down at induction
An emotional Country Music Hall of Fame ceremony took place on Sunday following Naomi Judd’s passing on April 30, 2022.
Daughters Ashley and Wynonna broke into tears as they emotionally accepted the induction.
“I’m sorry that she couldn’t hang on until today,” Ashley told the audience, The Associated Press reports.
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Why did The Judds split?
The Judds actively made music from 1983 until 1991.
The two decided to split in 1991 after doctors diagnosed Naomi Judd with hepatitis C.
The duo reunited regularly after splitting for performances throughout the years.
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Who were The Judds?
The Judds was a successful country duo that consisted of Naomi Judd and daughter Wynonna.
The Judds first signed a record deal in 1983 and released six studio albums before 1991.
Tragically, The Judds were set to be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame at a ceremony on Sunday, the day after Naomi’s death was announced.
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Was Naomi Judd married?
Naomi Judd was married to Michael Ciminella from 1964 to 1972.
After they split, Naomi met Larry Strickland.
The two remained together until Naomi’s death in 2022.
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Who was Naomi Judd?
Naomi Judd was an award-winning singer from Kentucky.
She was a part of the duo The Judds with her daughter Wynonna.
Together, Naomi and Wynonna won five Grammy Awards and nine Country Music Association (CMA) awards.