When Chris Lane and Lauren Bushnell Lane first crossed paths at an awards show in 2015, neither predicted the life they would build together. More than a decade later, the couple, who tied the knot in 2019 after a whirlwind romance, are now proud parents to three beautiful children: sons Dutton and Baker and their baby daughter, Logan.
On the surface, their journey may look like a fairy tale. But, for the country music superstar, 41, transitioning from a single, road-warrior lifestyle to being a family man and a father didn’t happen overnight.
“I’ve learned first and foremost that I was a very selfish person, especially with my time,” Lane admitted, reflecting on how marriage and fatherhood have ultimately reshaped his priorities while appearing on If You Can Hear Me with Ben Higgins.
Before Lauren and the couple’s three kids came into the picture, Lane’s world revolved around country music. As a touring artist, he was chasing opportunities wherever they led, even if that meant driving all night to play at small venues for little to no pay.
“I sacrificed so much for that,” Lane said, recalling the early days of grinding it out and building his career from the ground up.
That relentless hustle eventually paid off, but it also created habits that were hard to break.
“It was a very hard transition for me as an artist who’s always just been able to go do what I want to do,” Lane acknowledged. “Then when you have a family, you kind of have to put them first….now that I have a family, I’ve had to take a lot of time off because if you have young kids, it is hard. It’s a full-time job, especially on a mother.”
After playing hundreds of shows a year, Lane, who makes most of his income from touring, says he had to whittle those shows down to 50 or 60. Needless to say, he felt the weight of stepping back professionally.
“That’s a lot of FaceTime that I’m missing out there in front of people,” he said. “I think that’s the easiest way to get or to make fans at the end of the day is for them seeing you in concert, saying, ‘Wow, I want to go back and see that guy again. So yeah, it’s hard to take time off…For me, having to take so much time off, there can be a little resentment in that because you get these peaks and valleys as an artist, and when you’re at a peak, you’ve got to get out there, and you’ve got to do it because it’s not always going to be there.”
“There have been moments where I feel like I’m not doing anything because I’m trying to be home,” he added. “It gets really hard on me mentally to navigate how to balance it.”
Dutton’s arrival came at a career high when Lane was fresh off “three massive songs” and selling tickets at a rapid pace. At the time, he admits, he and Lauren faced difficult conversations about time, touring, and parenting.
“When you go from zero to one, and you don’t really know what to expect, it is hard,” Lane shared. “And exceptionally hard on her. There were some tough times.”
Lane admits resentment was, at one point, felt on both sides, particularly during his longer stretches away from home. As an artist, the “Big, Big Plans” singer knows careers can be fleeting.
“I feel like most artists have short-lived careers. You want to be like Kenny Chesney and Tim McGraw and all these guys who have 20, 30, 40-year careers. But I think for 99% of artists, that’s just not the reality,” he said of decades-long success. “You’ve got to get out there and get it while you can.”
He acknowledges that navigating those early years of marriage with the former Bachelor reality star required intentional effort.
“It just takes a lot of communication,” Lane said candidly, acknowledging it’s never been his strength. “…You have to be understanding. You cannot make it all about yourself, no matter how bad you want to.”
For Lane, choosing family first, even when it meant stepping away from the spotlight, has been worth it.
“Just not being able to be selfish anymore was a tough transition for me, but now I feel like I’m in a good spot with it…My kids are the best thing that has ever happened to me,” he said. “You don’t always think that in the moment when they’re screaming, and you’re not getting any sleep, but it’s true. Family is everything.”
