News has emerged today that country music star couple Amanda Shires and Jason Isbell are going their separate ways. People magazine reported that Jason had filed for divorce from his wife after nearly eleven years of marriage last December, according to court records. The filing came just two months before what would have been the couple’s 11th wedding anniversary.
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The end of their relationship has impacted both of their careers. Since tying the knot in 2013, the pair have worked together on their music, with Amanda playing the fiddle and singing backup for her former husband’s band, the 400 Unit. Jason has also performed for Amanda’s country supergroup, The Highwomen, for whom he has played guitar.
A year ago this month, the former couple celebrated their 10-year anniversary with posts on social media. Jason wrote on his Instagram account at the time, “Every day I wake up and fall in love with you again,” about his then-wife.
Jason and Amanda Have Previously Discussed Their Marriage Problems
However, the couple have also been transparent about problems with their relationship before news of their split surfaced. Last year, their relationship was on display in the documentary Running With Our Eyes Closed. In one scene, Amanda is seen reading an email she had sent Jason about possibly taking up marriage counseling.
In 2022, Amanda opened up to People about trying to work things out with Jason. She said, “It doesn’t matter if you’re a quasi-famous person like Jason or me; everybody’s relationships are the same.”
She continued, “There’s ups and downs, and there’s good and bad, and you just try to deal with it. Life’s not easy, marriage isn’t easy, but aren’t we lucky to be able to live?”
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For many years, Jason has talked about how his album Reunions took a toll on his relationships. In 2020, he talked to The New York Times about how making the album had made him want to push everyone away.
He even went as far as admitting that he said, “At one point, it’d be easier if somebody had cheated.” “But,” he continued, “it was more like, ‘We don’t know each other right now. We’re not able to speak the same language.’”
That same year, Amanda moved into a hotel for ten days, apparently because “lines had been crossed” and she “needed space.” However, they later were able to reconcile. Two years later Amanda addressed her marriage problems in the song Fault Lines.
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In an interview with Nashville Scene, Amanda talked about a “disconnect” that grew between her and her husband during lockdown. She said, “It was a big blur of not being able to get through. So I thought, ‘Maybe I’ll write a song with my feelings and send it to Jason.’”
Although she did send a demo of the song to Jason, Nashville Scene reported that “he left the song unplayed.”
Although their marriage is now coming to an end, Jason and Amanda have been able to learn lessons from it and use it in their creative pursuits. As Amanda put it to the Nashville Scene, “You gave the choice to be vulnerable or not. However you handle yourself, it’s all about choice.”
