This article discusses suicide. If you or someone you know is considering suicide, please contact the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988 or 1-800-273-TALK (8255).
Wynonna Judd said she still feels the presence of her late mother, Naomi Judd, when she performs.
The 60-year-old singer and Naomi were part of the Grammy Award-winning mother-daughter country duo The Judds, which they formed in 1980. Us Weekly, Judd was asked if he was still in contact with Naomi, who passed away in April 2022.
“Yeah. I look up a lot when I’m onstage because I see angels. I do that with my mom now. I’m like, ‘What the hell are they doing? Where are they? Why aren’t they here? Why aren’t we singing together again?'” Judd said.
Wynonna Judd revealed that she still talks to her late mother, Naomi Judd, during the performance. (Mindy Small/FilmMagic)
The “I Saw The Light” hitmaker told media outlets that she feels closest to Naomi on stage and with her granddaughter, Kaliyah, whose mother is Judd’s 27-year-old daughter, Grace Kelly. Judd is currently looking after Grace’s two-year-old daughter, who has been embroiled in a string of legal troubles.
Wynonna Judd is ‘still very upset’ over mother Naomi Judd’s death, but feels ‘closer’ to Sister Ashley
“She carries around pictures of her mom and pictures of her and her mom,” Judd said of Kalyah. “I talk to her about them and I say, ‘They love you so much.'”
Naomi died by suicide at the age of 76, the day before she and Judd were scheduled to be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame on April 30, 2022. In an interview with Us Weekly, Judd reflected on how he’s dealing with the loss two years since his mother’s death.
“I’m in a really good place,” Judd said, “and I’ve worked on forgiveness and letting go of the anger and frustration I felt about the suicide.” [At a fan club party] Last night, everyone was wearing ’80s and ’90s Jazz shirts. I thought, ‘I have a choice. I can either get better or I can be bitter.’ Grief comes and goes. In terms of healing, I see this as a gift.”
Judd and Naomi formed a musical group called “The Judds.” (Jeff Kravitz/Getty Images via CMT)
Judd told the outlet that the most difficult moments of the grieving process can be overcome by allowing yourself to feel your emotions.
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“Something happens, you start crying and you think, ‘What is wrong with me?’ But then you realise there’s nothing wrong with you. It’s completely okay to cry. It’s about accepting it and embracing it. I’ll cry as much as I need to, and when it’s time to stop, it’s time to stop,” she said.
Judd credits his faith, more than his family, with helping him heal after Naomi’s death.
Naomi committed suicide in April 2022 at the age of 76. (Kevin Winter/Getty Images)
“I’m not saying this to be negative,” she explained, “but families are sometimes chaotic and dysfunctional. Someone just got married, someone just lost their dog, someone’s mom has cancer, all of these things are happening right now, there’s a lot going on in our family.”
“I read the Bible a lot,” she said. “Jesus is real to me. It’s not a religion, it’s a relationship.”
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But the Kentucky native told Us Weekly that losing Naomi has brought her closer to her sister, Ashley Judd, who shares her strong faith.
“I feel like our bond has gotten even stronger since my mom passed away, and the glue between the stones is God,” Judd said. “We’re both believers, so we have a really strong bond now. There’s no drama, and if there is, it doesn’t last as long as it used to.”
Judd said she became closer to Naomi’s sister, Ashley Judd, after her death. (Kevin Mazur/WireImage)
“We’re getting older and we realize we only have a limited amount of time left,” she added.
During the interview with Us Weekly, Judd also revealed that Kaliyah is following in her family’s footsteps.
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“We started singing together,” Judd said. “My favorite thing in life is sitting on the porch with her and eating ice cream, and she’s sitting in her rocking chair, [says,] “Noni, where are you going? Noni, what are you doing?”
“Being with her in that moment [is] “I realized that no amount of money could ever make me this happy,” she continued. “I thought it would, but it didn’t.”
“When I lay in bed with her before sleep, she pressed her nose against mine and sang to me, and she started singing back to me… [it’s] Paradise on earth.”
