Country music star Miranda Lambert is revisiting the "special moment" she shared with ex-husband Blake Shelton while writing her hit song "Over You" to help him grieve his late brother. Speaking in an interview with Kelleigh Bannen for Apple’s Essentials Radio, the singer explained that she had not known of the tragic loss and, when she found out, she wanted to help Shelton work through his grief. Music seemed like the perfect outlet.
"My ex-husband, Blake, had lost a brother, and it’s one of those moments where, even if you’re married to someone, sometimes you find something new about them," Lambert shared, according to Today. "Dudes don’t open up about things, but he started telling me about the experience of it all."
Shelton's brother, Richie, died in 1990 at age 24 after a car accident. When Lambert asked whether Shelton had ever tried to write about the painful experience, he admitted he had never made an attempt to do so. Lambert recalled her ex-husband saying that his father told him, "you don't get over it; you just get used to it." That was when she had the idea to involve her husband in writing a song about his brother.
"And I was like, 'Well, could we write it? Do you want to try or is that invasive?'" she said. "'I would never try to write your story because I didn’t live it, but maybe I could help because I’m an outside perspective. I feel your pain talking to me right now.'"
After the conversation, they sat down together and penned the 2012 hit "Over You," which won the CMA Award and the ACM Award for Song of the Year. Looking back, Lambert said it was a "really special moment" which she was glad they got to share together to help Shelton's family heal.
Lambert and Shelton split up in 2015 after four years of marriage. The power couple first met in 2005 at CMT’s 100 Greatest Duets Concert concert, where they performed together. Shelton was still married to his first wife, Kaynette Gern, whom he divorced in 2006. He proposed to Lambert in 2010 and the following year they tied the knot in Texas.
Lambert is now married to NYPD Officer Brendan McLoughlin, while Shelton recently got engaged to singer Gwen Stefani. The pair got to know each other while appearing as vocal coaches on the set of "The Voice" in 2014. Although both were married at the time, they began dating when both their relationships ended in 2015. In July they casually announced their engagement on social media.
"Hey @gwenstefani thanks for saving my 2020... And the rest of my life.. I love you. I heard a YES!" Shelton wrote in a tweet that featured a photo of the pair kissing. In the image, Stefani is showing off her engagement ring.
The No Doubt singer-songwriter also took to social media to share the news.
"@blakeshelton yes please!" she captioned the same image on Instagram.
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Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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