American singer-songwriter and actress, Naomi Judd has died at the age of 76. Recall that in 1983, she and her daughter Wynonna formed the duo known as the Judds, which became a very successful act in country music, winning five Grammy Awards and nine Country Music Association awards.
Announcing the passing of Judd, Wynonna and sister, actress Ashley Judd, in a statement said “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.”
Records have it that the Judds strung together a long list of hit singles in the 1980s and 1990s, and in 1994 released a compilation album of 12 songs that topped the country charts, including Grammy-winning hits “Why Not Me,” “Mama He’s Crazy” and “Grandpa (Tell Me ‘Bout the Good Old Days).”
Their songs epitomized raw emotion of single women struggling to manage motherhood, family and romance – much of it based on their real-world experiences. It was stated that Judd was just 17 when she gave birth to her eldest daughter, Christina Ciminella, bearing the surname of her father, Michael. The daughter would later change her name to Wynonna Judd after Naomi and her husband divorced in 1972.
Remarkably, the Judds were named top vocal duo by the Academy of Country Music seven years in a row, from 1984 to 1990. They also won five Grammy Awards for Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group from 1985 to 1992, including “Give A Little Love” and “Love Can Build a Bridge” – the latter of which earned songwriter Naomi another Grammy for Country Song of the Year.
Sadly, Naomi died a day before the Judds are to be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.
It could be recalled that in 2016, Naomi revealed that she battled severe depression and anxiety since she and Wynonna stopped touring as The Judds in 2011.
She said “[Fans] see me in rhinestones, you know, with glitter in my hair, that really is who I am. But then I would come home and not leave the house for three weeks, and not get out of my pajamas, and not practice normal hygiene. It was really bad.”
Judd was born to Pauline Ruth “Polly” and Charles Glen Judd on January 11, 1946 in Ashland, Kentucky.
The Nigerian Canadian Newspaper commiserates with the Judd’s family over Naomi’s death.
