Kelsea Ballerini honored the late Naomi Judd with a beautiful tribute on Monday, May 2.
The country superstar and “Heart First” singer took to social media to share a heartfelt performance with the country music community, who are also mourning the tragic loss of the late Judds’ singer.
“A big loss for country music,” Ballerini captioned the clip. “Thinking of the Judd family and honoring Naomi by listening to and continuing to be influenced by the monumental music she made. 💔”
Watch Ballerini’s heartfelt tribute below.
Naomi Judd passed away at the age of 76 on Saturday (April 30), shocking the country music community.
Her passing was revealed on social media in a statement from her daughters. “Today we sisters experienced a tragedy. We lost our beautiful mother to the disease of mental illness,” the statement read. “We are shattered. We are navigating profound grief and know that as we loved her, she was loved by her public. We are in unknown territory.”
The unfortunate news comes just weeks after Naomi Judd and Wynonna Judd reunited for a performance of “Love Can Build A Bridge” at the 2022 CMT Music Awards.
Their performance coincided with the announcement of The Judds’ farewell tour, which was set to kick off on September 30 and hit 10 cities with support from Martina McBride.
The mother-daughter duo earned 14 No. 1 hits during their career that spanned nearly three decades, including “Love Can Build a Bridge,” “Mama He’s Crazy,” “Why Not Me,” “Turn It Loose,” “Girls Night Out,” “Rockin’ With the Rhythm of the Rain” and “Grandpa.”
Re-Live The Judds’ Final Performance Of “Love Can Build A Bridge”
The Judds toured in the ’80s where they had a catalog of twenty Top 10 hits, 20 million-plus albums sold, a combined 16 Gold, Platinum, and multi-Platinum albums, and The Judds Greatest Hits.
Since launching their career in 1983, the duo went on to release six studio albums and an EP. The superstar pair have also won several awards, including nine CMA Awards, seven Academy Of Country Music Awards and five GRAMMY Awards for hits like “Why Not Me” and “Give A Little Love.”
After rising to fame, the iconic country duo broke up in 1991 after Doctors diagnosed Naomi with hepatitis c.
In addition to her celebrated music career, Naomi was also an actress, having appeared in several TV movies and TV series.
On May 1, Wynonna Judd accepted the high honor of The Judds being inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame with her sister, Ashley, by her side. During their appearance at the event, the sisters paid tribute to their late mother with a tearful speech and by reciting a biblical verse.
