TORONTO — From Hank Williams’ “Your Cheating Heart” and Garth Brooks’ “Thunder Rolls” to Carrie Underwood’s “Before He Cheats” and Taylor Swift’s “Should’ve Said No,” infidelity has been a popular theme in country music.
Hot on the heels of Jason Aldean’s divorce filing — after he got cozy with a former American Idol contestant — we look at the top 8 cheating allegations that rocked country music.
JASON ALDEAN
Aldean filed for divorce from Jessica Ussery in April after he was caught being intimate with former American Idol competitor Brittany Kerr. “I screwed up. I had too much to drink … and acted inappropriately,” Aldean admitted in a public apology posted online. “I ultimately ended up embarrassing my family and myself.” Aldean and Ussery had been married since 2001 and have two daughters together.
GARTH BROOKS
In a 1993 interview, Brooks admitted he had been unfaithful during this marriage to Sandy Mahl. They reconciled “after I wore out a pair of jeans while I was down on my knees begging her to take me back,” he explained. Brooks filed for divorce in 2000. He has been married to country singer Trisha Yearwood since 2005.
LEANN RIMES
Rimes and her husband of seven years, dancer Dean Sheremet, split up in 2009 after he found out about her fling with married actor Eddie Cibrian on the Alberta set of the TV movie Northern Lights. After their divorces were finalized, Rimes and Cibrian tied the knot in 2011. They recently celebrated their second anniversary in Toronto.
RANDY TRAVIS
Travis’s wife Elizabeth Hatcher ended their 19-year marriage in 2010 after Hatcher — the “Forever & Ever, Amen” singer’s longtime manager — reportedly caught him cheating with the dentist’s wife, Mary Beougher. The allegations were first reported by the National Enquirer.
SARA EVANS
The country star’s husband Craig Schelske alleged in his 2006 divorce papers that Evans admitted cheating on him. Previously, Evans (whose hits include “Cheatin”) had alleged that Schelske cheated on her with their former nanny, Alison Clinton — a claim both Schelske and Clinton denied.
WILLIE NELSON
Nelson’s second marriage, to Shirley Collie, ended in 1971 after she learned he fathered a child with Connie Koepke. After his divorce from Collie was finalized, Nelson married Koepke — but they divorced in 1988.
SHANIA TWAIN
The “Whose Bed Have Your Boots Been Under?” singer was devastated in 2008 when she found out her husband Robert “Mutt” Lange was allegedly cheating on her with her friend Marie-Anne Thiebaud. In a twist worthy of a country song, Twain started a relationship with Marie-Anne’s husband Frederic, whom she married in 2011.
BILLY RAY CYRUS
Cyrus had an “Achy Breaky Heart” in October 2010 when he filed for divorce from wife Tish. According to Us Weekly, Miley’s mom had a fling with Poison rocker Bret Michaels (a claim both Tish Cyrus and Michaels denied). “We are trying to work through some personal matters,” said Cyrus, who withdrew divorce papers a few months later.
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