Zac Brown opened up about his recent divorce for an in-depth interview with CBS This Morning, revealing its impact on his band’s latest album, The Owl, and how he feels about being tagged as a “country artist.”
Speaking with CBS’ Vladimir Duthiers, Brown admitted that after 12 years of marriage and five children with his now ex-wife, Shelly, it was time to move on. He and Shelly announced their separation in October of last year.
“There are lots of thing you don’t ever foresee,” Brown explained about realizing his marriage was over. “You know when you live in something long enough that it’s not working anymore. The differences that are there are greater, and that it’s healthier to not live in conflict than it is to try to stay. And no matter how many mistakes … she absolutely was the one. And, you know, we have five amazing, beautiful children together. And that was the reason that we were together. It’s not how I planned it to be. But it gave me more than I could’ve ever dreamed of having.”
The front man said he’s been channeling his grief through his music, and fans can see it when his band takes the stage every night. But they can also hear it on the band’s new album, The Owl. Fans even saw some of his transformation with 2018’s “Someone I Used to Know.”
“I decided two years ago that there were just parts of myself that I didn’t wanna be anymore,” he says. “Some mornings being on the road you wake up with some headaches. That’s not anymore. My life’s not about that anymore.”
The singer songwriter also touched on his 20-plus years on the road and feeling boxed in by the “country musician” label. Zac Brown Band’s The Owl is out now, and the band’s tour continues through October 27 in The Woodlands, Texas. In related news, Brown released a surprise solo album titled The Controversy last month.
