Charles Kelley, a member of the band Lady A, has been open and honest with his fans about his personal journey to sobriety. However, there is one particular incident that he has never directly addressed until recently. Kelley has finally revealed that there was a time when he was dangerously close to getting a DUI while driving under the influence.
In an interview on Elizabeth Vargas' Heart of the Matter podcast, Kelley confesses that when he used to consume alcohol, it became a regular thing for him to have "four or five drinks" while playing golf in a single day, and then he would drive himself back home.
Kelley acknowledges that they were driving under the influence. They mention that even though the drive was short, there were moments where they realized how foolish and risky their actions were. The following day, they reflect on the situation and express remorse, realizing the potential harm they could have caused to others or themselves.
On one specific occasion, Kelley had a close call with being charged with a DUI. It happened during the Christmas season, and he recollects that his wife Cassie and son Ward were away for a few days. This meant that he had no familial responsibilities and could freely consume alcohol without any restrictions. He spent a day playing golf and drinking at a nearby bar. As the night came to a close, some of the other customers began expressing worry about whether Kelley intended to drive home.
He recalls, "I thought to myself, if I don't drive back, my wife will ask where my car is. Even though I could have retrieved it the following morning, she wouldn't have been aware of that because she wasn't there."
However, with a strong resolve to return home alone, he discreetly exited through the rear of the establishment and departed in his vehicle. Unfortunately, he was soon stopped by law enforcement during the extremely brief journey to his residence.
The police officer glanced at my driver's license and asked, "Are you the person in that band?" I responded affirmatively. Instead of arresting me for driving under the influence, the officer instructed me to pull my car over and drove me the remaining distance to my home. He didn't issue me a ticket or any form of punishment. I was amazed and relieved by my fortunate escape from legal trouble.
However, the occurrence served as a reminder for Kelley that he needed to inform his spouse about the incident.
The singer expresses their feeling of complete exhaustion and frustration after being pulled over, stating that they felt like giving up. They realize that their actions could have had serious consequences and caused a lot of trouble for their band. They acknowledge that the negative publicity resulting from the incident would have been terrible.
He made a firm decision to stop drinking alcohol and struggled for three months to resist the temptation, but eventually fell back into his previous drinking habits. It took another year for him to finally enter a rehabilitation program and fully dedicate himself to maintaining a sober lifestyle.
Following his stint in rehabilitation, it didn't take much time for Kelly to reveal his struggles with alcohol to Lady A fans. The country trio was transparent with their dedicated followers, explaining that they had postponed their 2022 Request Line Tour in order to safeguard Kelley's fragile sobriety. This decision to be honest was solely made by Kelley himself, while his bandmates Hillary Scott and Dave Haywood proposed using alternative explanations for the tour's cancellation.
Kelley expressed that she had no shame in her actions and acknowledged that what she was about to do was extremely challenging. Instead of taking the easy way out by continuing to drink and destroy everything, she chose to confront her situation honestly. Kelley mentioned that she was thankful for this difficult experience, and that was when she realized it was time to share her story. Since then, it has gained momentum in a positive and beneficial manner.
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