Wynonna Judd says mother Naomi foreshadowed her suicide: ‘She talked about it a lot’
Wynonna Judd says mother Naomi foreshadowed her suicide: ‘She talked about it a lot’
Raechal ShewfeltThu, October 22, 2026 at 4:49 AM UTC
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Wynonna and Naomi Judd in 2000Credit: Ron Wolfson/GettyKey Points -
Wynonna Judd spoke about the death of her mother, Naomi, in a recent interview.
The “No One Else on Earth” artist said the heartbreaking news was not a shock.
The “Have Mercy” singer, 76, died on April 30, 2022.
Wynonna Judd revealed her mother Naomi’s death was not a surprise.
“No. She talked about it a lot, even to her grandson who’s a deputy, about jumping off a bridge,” Wynonna said on a recent episode of All There Is With Anderson Cooper. “And she talked about it so much with me. I don’t know who else, besides [Wynonna’s sister] Ashley [Judd], but she talked about it a lot. And I think I got to the point where, ‘no, no, no, no, no, no. You’re not gonna do that. You have too much to live for.’”
Naomi, who had teamed up with Wynonna to form the duo The Judds, one of the most popular country music acts on the 1980s, died on April 30, 2022 in her home outside of Nashville. She was 76.
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At the time, Wynonna and Ashley, an actress known for movies including Double Jeopardy, Heat, and Kiss the Girls, gave a statement to the : “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.”
The “I Saw the Light” singer told Cooper that she couldn’t recall when her mother had first spoken of taking her own life.
“I don’t remember the first time, because she talked about it so much,” Wynonna said. “But I do know that she was always watching those shows, those damn shows on TV about stuff like that.”
She said she wasn’t quite sure how to respond.
“I just remember thinking, ‘What is she doing? I don’t understand,’” Wynonna recalled. “And she’d call me and say, ‘I don’t want to be here anymore.’ And I’d go over and spend the night with her. And it was awful. It was really awful. She was really struggling in the end.”
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An autopsy report later indicated that Naomi’s cause of death was a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
“We have always shared openly both the joys of being family as well its sorrows, too,” the family said in a statement. “One part of our story is that our matriarch was dogged by an unfair foe. She was treated for PTSD and bipolar disorder, to which millions of Americans can relate.”
Naomi and Wynonna Judd perform in Las Vegas in 2015Credit: Isaac Brekken/Getty
Wynonna sang about her complicated feelings for her late mother on her new album — her first since 2016 — The Hard Truth.
“I have forgiven her as much as possible,” Wynonna told Entertainment Weekly’s sister publication, PEOPLE, last month. “You don’t forget.”
She explained that one of the factors contributing to her mixed feelings is that her mother keep the identity of her biological father from her for years.
“But I’ve wondered a million times why she didn’t tell me,” Wynonna said. “I carry a great deal of anger about that at times. And then other times I totally accept it. It’s part of my story. It’s what helps us write good songs.”
Watch Wynonna’s full conversation with Anderson Cooper above.
If you or someone you know is struggling with mental health challenges, emotional distress, substance use problems, or just needs to talk, call or text 988, or chat at 988lifeline.org 24/7.
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