Charles Kelley, a member of the music group Lady A, has been open and honest with his fans about his personal journey towards sobriety. However, there is one particular incident that he has never publicly addressed until recently: the moment he came dangerously close to receiving a DUI after driving under the influence.
In an interview with Elizabeth Vargas on her 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 they were driving while under the influence of alcohol. Despite the short duration of the drive, there were instances where they realized the extreme recklessness and danger of their actions. The following day, they had a realization that their actions could have resulted in the loss of someone's life, including their own.
On one specific occasion, Kelley had a close call with being charged with driving under the influence. He recalls that it happened during Christmas while his wife Cassie and son Ward were away for a few days. This gave him the freedom to drink as much as he pleased without any familial responsibilities. Kelley spent a day playing golf and drinking at a nearby bar. Towards the end of the night, other customers at the bar began to worry about whether Kelley intended to drive home.
He recalls, "I thought to myself, if I don't drive back, my wife will ask me where my car is. Even though I could have retrieved it the next day, she wouldn't have been aware of it since she wasn't there."
However, with a strong resolve to return home by himself, he discreetly left the bar through the rear exit and departed in his car. Unfortunately, he was stopped by the police during the extremely brief journey back to his house.
The police officer checked my driver's license and asked if I was the person in that band. I confirmed that I was indeed part of the band. Instead of arresting me for driving under the influence, the officer instructed me to park my car and personally drove me the remaining distance to my home. He didn't issue me a ticket or any penalties. I was shocked and relieved that I managed to avoid any trouble.
Nevertheless, the occurrence served as a jolt to Kelley, prompting him to realize that he needed to inform his spouse about the incident.
The singer expresses their feelings of being completely worn out and ready to give up. They explain that they had just been pulled over and this incident had the potential to severely damage their life and cause a lot of trouble for their band. They acknowledge that it would have resulted in negative publicity, which they wanted to avoid.
He made a firm decision to stop consuming alcohol and struggled for three months to resist the temptation. However, he eventually relapsed and returned to his previous habits of drinking. It took him another year to finally seek help and fully dedicate himself to a life of sobriety.
Following his time in rehabilitation, it didn't take Kelly much time to reveal to Lady A fans about his struggle with alcohol. The country trio was transparent with their supporters, explaining that the postponement of their 2022 Request Line Tour was primarily to safeguard Kelley's early stages of recovery. Kelley himself made the choice to be honest about it. On the other hand, Hillary Scott and Dave Haywood, his bandmates, proposed concocting alternative reasons for the band's decision to not go on tour.
Kelley expressed that she was not ashamed of the difficult task she had undertaken. Instead of taking the easy way out by continuing to drink and destroying everything, she decided to face her challenges head-on. She mentioned feeling grateful for the experience, which marked a turning point for her. This led her to decide to share her story, and it has since gained momentum in a positive and beneficial manner.
Here are 18 country music artists who have chosen to live a sober lifestyle. Additionally, we have compiled a list of 11 great country songs that revolve around the
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