Charles Kelley, a member of the band Lady A, has been open and honest with his fans about his personal experience with sobriety. However, there is one particular event that he has never discussed openly before: the incident when he came close to receiving a DUI for driving under the influence.
In an interview on Elizabeth Vargas' Heart of the Matter podcast, Kelley confesses that when he consumed alcohol, it became a regular habit for him to have "four or five drinks" while playing golf and then proceed to drive himself back home.
Kelley confesses that she was driving while under the influence of alcohol. Despite the short duration of the drive, there were instances where she realized the extreme stupidity and danger of her actions. The following day, she reflects on the potential consequences and regrets that she could have caused harm to someone else or even lost her own life.
On a specific occasion, Kelley had a close call with a DUI charge. It happened during the Christmas season, and his wife Cassie and son Ward were away for a few days. This gave him the freedom to drink without any family responsibilities. Kelley spent the day playing golf and drinking at a nearby bar. As the night came to a close, fellow patrons began to worry and question if Kelley intended to drive home.
"And I thought to myself, 'If I don't go back home by car, my wife will question me about where my car is.' Even though I could have retrieved it the following morning without her knowing, since she wasn't present," he recalls.
However, with a strong resolve to return home alone, he discreetly exited through the rear of the establishment and began driving away. Unfortunately, during his brief journey towards his residence, he was stopped by law enforcement.
The police officer inspected my driver's license and asked, "Are you the person in that band?" I replied, "Yes." Instead of detaining me for driving under the influence, the officer instructed me to pull over my car and kindly offered to drive me home. He didn't issue me any citation. I was amazed and relieved, thinking to myself, "Wow, that was a close call."
However, the occurrence served as a sudden realization for Kelley, prompting him to understand the importance of informing his wife about what had transpired.
In that moment, I felt completely exhausted and reached a point where I thought, "Enough is enough." I had just been stopped by the police, and it hit me that I had come dangerously close to ruining my life. Not only that, but I had also caused a great deal of turmoil for the band. Naturally, it would have resulted in extremely negative publicity, which would have been disastrous.
He made a promise to himself to stop drinking alcohol and struggled for three months to resist the temptation. However, he eventually succumbed to his old habits of drinking. It took him another year before he finally sought professional help and made a wholehearted commitment to a life of sobriety.
Shortly after completing rehab, Kelly didn't waste much time before sharing with Lady A fans about his struggle with alcohol addiction. The country trio made it known to their fanbase that they had decided to postpone their 2022 Request Line Tour in order to support and safeguard Kelley's newfound sobriety. It was Kelley's choice to be transparent about this matter. Meanwhile, his bandmates, Hillary Scott and Dave Haywood, initially proposed fabricating alternative reasons for the band's decision to not go on tour.
"I refused to hide the truth and admitted that I was not ashamed of it. This was the most difficult thing I have ever done." Taking the easy way out would have meant continuing to drink excessively and destroying everything in my life. I expressed gratitude for the situation, which became a turning point for me to start sharing my story. As a result, it has gained momentum in a very positive and beneficial manner.
Here are 18 country artists who have chosen to live a sober lifestyle. Additionally, we have compiled a list of 11 great country songs that revolve around the theme
Additional content from Taste of Country can be found here. For more information, please