Kelsea Ballerini honored Barbara Mandrell with a performance of “I Was Country When Country Wasn’t Cool” on Opry 100: A Live Celebration on NBC and Peacock TV.
Barbara Mandrell retired in 1997 at 48 following a performance at the Grand Ole Opry House and withdrew from the spotlight.
Highlights
- Barbara Mandrell even sold her instruments and has rarely made public appearances since choosing to stay home with her loved ones.
- She had a leg fracture, a concussion, and other injuries in the crash in 1984.
- After a year and a half of recovery, she could return to her music career.
Since then, she has kept a low profile, making few public appearances related to her music career.
She has focused on activities like gardening, painting, and spending time with her family and pets.
In the ’70s and ’80s, Barbara Mandrell was a dominant force in country music, earning two Entertainer of the Year titles at the Country Music Awards and winning two Grammys.
After nearly 27 years of retirement, fans are excited to see Barbara Mandrell make a rare appearance on the 100 Years of the Grand Ole Opry special tonight! It’s just as thrilling as it was in the 1980s!
Barbara Mandrell Steps Away from Music After Tragic Accident, Focuses On Family
Barbara Mandrell stepped away from her music career to focus on spending more time with her family, including her teenage son.
She even sold her instruments and has rarely made public appearances since choosing to stay home with her loved ones.
However, she continued as Alex Mitchum on Sunset Beach until 1998, even after her final concert performance.
In the early ’80s, Barbara Mandrell was on top of the world.
She was racking up awards as a prosperous country crossover artist and had even ventured into television.
However, in 1984, at the height of her fame, she faced a tragedy. On September 11 of that year, she was involved in a serious car accident in which the driver of the other vehicle lost their life.
Barbara Mandrell suffered a leg fracture, a concussion, and other injuries in the crash, while two of her children, who were in the car with her, were also hurt (via The New York Times).
She spent a year and a half recovering before returning to her music career.
Following the accident, Mandrell became a strong advocate for seatbelt use.
Although her children wore seatbelts at the time, the family had not always used them regularly.
The police report indicated that the other driver, 19-year-old Mark White, had crossed the centerline, causing the collision.
However, Mandrell and her husband, Ken Dudney, faced public backlash after suing White’s family for $10.3 million in damages.
Their lawyer later explained that the lawsuit was necessary to obtain insurance compensation.
Additional Information
- Born in Texas and raised primarily in California, Barbara Mandrell came from a musical family.
- By her teenage years, she had already mastered several instruments, with her steel guitar skills catching the attention of country music stars.
- At 13, Mandrell was allowed to perform publicly, eventually becoming a Town Hall Party TV show regular.
