Country music star Rory Feek posted a blog post Monday sharing that he discovered the daughter he raised is not biologically his child.
The famous singer responded to Hopie Feek’s bombshell revelation that she had taken a 23andMe DNA test that proved her biological father was a man named B.C.
Hopie shared an Instagram post explaining she and her sister Heidi are daughters of Tamara Gillmor, who was married to Feek from 1985 util 1992, but despite being raised by Feek, her results indicated he was not related by blood.
“This news and this blood test doesn’t change anything” Feek wrote, adding, “I love you as my daughter and I always will.”
In a blog post titled “A Different Dad,” Feek said that his love for Hopie “isn’t based” on them “having the same blood running through” their “veins.”
“I love her because she’s my child, even if technically … she’s not,” he wrote.
The famous singer said he met up with Hopie in the cemetery where his late wife Joey is buried. Hopie shared the results of her DNA test, which she underwent after her mother said there was a good chance Feek was not her biological father. Feek admitted he wasn’t entirely surprised by the news and explained that he’d had suspicions that Hopie was not his daughter. He recalled doing the math when she was born several weeks past her due date, which didn’t align with his return from a six-month deployment with the Marines. He recalled asking his wife point-blank if Hopie was his child when they divorced, and was reassured that she was.
LAS VEGAS – APRIL 17: Recording artist Rory Feek of the duo Joey + Rory performs during the Academy of Country Music all-star concert at the Fremont Street Experience April 17, 2010 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
“I told Hopie that I guess a part of me knew. But more than that. I told her I didn’t care,” Feek wrote.
He wrote details about Heidi and Hopie’s childhood, noting they only saw her a few times while he raised them both.
“I’m disappointed and sad that it took three decades to learn this. But the truth is … I mostly hurt for Hopie,” Feek wrote.
“Hopie has such a tender heart, filled with child-like wonder and light, even in the darkest of days. It’s heartbreaking that she has had to deal with such an incredible amount of pain and loss in her relatively short life.”
FRANKLIN, TENNESSEE – MARCH 19: Rory Feek attends the “Someone Like You” Nashville Premiere at Franklin Theatre on March 19, 2024 in Franklin, Tennessee. (Photo by Danielle Del Valle/Getty Images for Someone Like You Movie)
Since making the discovery about her family roots, Hopie has “gotten really close” with B.C.
“I’ve never experienced unconditional love like that before,” she said in a video of her first meeting with her biological father. (RELATED: Sharon Stone Nearly Keels Over Upon Discovering She’s Related To First Holy Roman Emperor Charlemagne)
Hopie said that Feek’s blog post was “extremely disappointing” in a series of messages posted Wednesday on her Instagram. She took issue with him sharing the personal details and “shaming her mom” on his public forum.
