Inside the Judd Family: A Compelling Look at Country Music's Royalty and Their Troubling Legacy

Naomi Judd welcomed daughter Wynonna in May 1964 with ex-boyfriend Charles Jordan. After her relationship with Charles ended, Naomi married Michael Ciminella and gave birth to Ashley in April 1968. The couple divorced in 1972.

Navigating life as a single mother, Naomi and Wynonna formed the successful duo, The Judds, in the 1980s, making waves as a group and as solo artists. Their family expanded over the years as Wynonna and Ashley married, though only Wynonna has welcomed children.

Tragedy struck the Judd family in 2022 when Naomi died by suicide at 76.

"Today, we sisters experienced a tragedy. We lost our beautiful mother to the disease of mental illness," they shared in a joint statement. "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."

Born in January 1946 to Pauline Ruth and Charles Glen Judd, Naomi had a younger brother named Brian, who tragically passed away from leukemia at 17. Naomi became a mother at 18 and later relocated to Los Angeles after marrying Michael. Following her divorce, she returned to Kentucky with her daughters.

Naomi and Wynonna formed The Judds in 1983. They captured the hearts of audiences, winning five Grammy Awards and nine Country Music Association Awards, until Naomi's hepatitis C diagnosis led them to disband in 1991.

In 1989, Naomi married Larry Strickland, remaining with him until her final days. Throughout her life, she battled mental health issues, struggling with depression and anxiety.

Wynonna grew up unaware that her birth father was Charles, who passed away in 2000 before they could meet. She achieved fame with her mother as one-half of The Judds and later pursued a successful solo career, releasing eight studio albums and earning three No. 1 hits on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart.

Wynonna made her mark in the Country Music Hall of Fame as a member of The Judds.

Wynonna's first marriage was to Arch Kelley III in 1996, with whom she shares son Elijah and daughter Grace. They divorced in 1998. In 2003, she married D. R. Roach, but their relationship ended after his arrest for sexual assault of a child under 13 in 2007.

"I am obviously devastated. Our family will pull together, begin the healing process and hopefully — by the Grace of God — become stronger," Wynonna stated at the time.

Her ex-husband pleaded guilty to attempted aggravated sexual battery and is a registered s-- offender in Tennessee.

Almost 20 years later, Wynonna's daughter, Grace, revealed she was abused by the former bodyguard.

"When they found out in counseling what he had done to me, they're like, 'Wait a minute. We're going to report this to law enforcement,'" Grace claimed. "So is my mom rich? Yeah, she's so rich that she was able to sweep me under the rug and abuse me and then cover it all up."

Cactus Moser, the drummer for Highway 101, met Wynonna while touring in 1989. Their romance blossomed years later, leading to their marriage in June 2012.

Elijah, Wynonna's oldest child, was born in December 1994. He proposed to Hailey Williams in December 2017, and they married in October 2020.

Grace was born in June 1996 and has faced her own personal battles. In 2015, she was arrested for possession of meth and has had several other legal issues. Amid her struggles, Wynonna has assumed guardianship of Grace's daughter, Kaliyah.

Ashley took a different career path, favoring acting over music. Known for films like Double Jeopardy and Divergent, she is also an activist for gender equality and women's rights. Ashley accused Harvey Weinstein of sexual harassment in the #MeToo movement.

Ashley married racecar driver Dario Franchitti in 2001, but the couple divorced in 2013. Dario later married Eleanor Robb, with whom he has two children, and retired after a serious injury in 2013.

For anyone dealing with mental health issues, help is available—reach out to the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).