She was 76.
“Today, we sisters experienced a tragedy. We lost our beautiful mother to mental illness. We are broken, “Ashley Judd said in a statement on Twitter. Ashley Judd’s publicist confirmed the statement to CNN.
“We are deeply saddened and we know that as we loved her, she was loved by her audience,” the statement added. “We are in unfamiliar territory.”
Naomi and her daughter Wynonna began singing together as a professional artist in the early 1980s, eventually creating a series of big hits, including “Mama He’s Crazy” and “Love Can Build a Bridge” and selling more than 20 million records. .
Ashley Judd’s younger daughter later became a celebrity in her own right as an actress.
For seven years, The Judds won five Grammy Awards and had 14 singles № 1, according to the Country Music Hall of Fame.
The Judds completed what was announced as a farewell tour in 2011, but announced earlier this year a “Final Tour” with 10 dates, which was due to begin in September.
They performed together publicly for the first time in years earlier this month at the CMT Music Awards.
The duo was to be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame on Sunday. Naomi Judd was born Diana Ellen Judd in Kentucky in January 1946, according to The Judds’ official website.
After the birth of her two daughters, the family moved to Tennessee, where Naomi Judd worked as a nurse. By 1980, she was pursuing a music career for her and Winona and appeared on a local morning show, according to the website.
Their first single, “Had a Dream (For the Heart)”, released in 1983, reached number 17 on the Billboard country charts. Their next single, “Mama He’s Crazy,” became the number one song on country radio, according to the website, and won their first Grammy at The Judds in 1984.
The Hall of Fame of Country Music describes their music as “characterized by distinctive harmonies”, with “powerful” lead vocals and acoustic accompaniment with elements of “traditional folk, blues and family harmony”.
Diagnosed with hepatitis C, a potentially chronic and deadly viral disease, forced Naomi Judd to retire from concerts in 1990. “Love Can Build A Bridge”, released in December 1990, was the duo’s latest single, according to the website. In 2016, Naomi Judd revealed of a mental illness while participating in “Good Morning America,” saying she was diagnosed with severe depression and anxiety. The singer then said that “she will not leave the house for three weeks, do not get off her pajamas and do not practice normal hygiene.”
That same year, she wrote a book entitled The River of Time: My Descent and How I Appeared with Hope, explaining her struggles.
Following the news of her death, artists, including country stars Carrie Underwood and Travis Trit, shared a tribute on social media.
“Country music has lost a true legend … sing with the angels, Naomi !!! We are all sending prayers for the Judd family today,” Underwood wrote. Trit also shared his condolences to the family, writing in a post: “Naomi Judd was one of the nicest people I ever knew. I had the honor of working with her in movies and many musical events.”
CNN’s Lisa Respers contributed to this report.
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