Bobby Bones and Lindsay Ell Break Up

Country radio listeners received some disappointing news on Monday (Oct. 23) while listening to The Bobby Bones Show. Host Bobby Bones revealed that he and Lindsay Ell are no longer dating after a year-long relationship.

The decision to end things came after considering both of their positions in country music and how it affected their relationship. Bones has been open about these problems throughout their entire relationship, because the possible backlash was something the two considered before they got together.

“We started dating, and I was like, ‘We probably should think about this before we date. It could hurt your career, because other radio stations, Spotify, they’re going to hold it against you that you’re dating me. I don’t even know these people, but they’re going to hold it against you.’ And they did,” Bones said.

Bones referenced the Sacramento radio station that kicked Ell off their show lineup at the last minute as a prime example of this happening. Despite the fact that their relationship had nothing to do with Ell’s career, others were refusing to give Ell a chance simply because of her affiliation with Bones.

In an effort to combat the backlash, the couple figured that maybe if people were no longer seeing things about their relationship, then maybe it would not be in the front of their minds so much and they would stop treating Ell so unfairly.

“We tried to be proactive four months ago. We stopped posting things about each other, stopped everything,” Bones revealed. “We took our lives completely offline to not put it in people’s faces, and people are still holding it against her. It’s still happening.”

It got to the point where Bones felt that he was holding Ell back from reaching her full potential as a successful country artist.

“It started to put a stress on our relationship to me where I felt like it was my fault that she wasn’t able to get anything going. She’s on a great tour with Brad [Paisley], and she has an awesome song,” Bones said. “It wasn’t fair that people put her on the spot. It became a humongous stress on our relationship, because I felt like now I need to figure out how to make it work, and I’m the one that’s keeping it from working.”

Bones, who has been a longtime supporter of female artists, noted that gender unfortunately plays a huge role in this whole issue.

“Women already have it tough in this industry, and then again because she chose to date me. I don’t know why she chose to date me. I wouldn’t date me. She is being penalized to this day,” Bones said.

As for the feelings the two have for each other post-breakup, Bones assured that he and Ell are still on good terms, saying, “there’s zero percent anything bad” between them.