Monday night (April 22), American Idol alum Kellie Pickler marked her first public performance since her husband’s death.
Kellie Pickler was one of many artists tapped to participate in a Patsy Cline tribute concert at the Ryman Auditorium. Walkin’ After Midnight: The Music of Patsy Cline featured performances from Ashley McBryde, Wynonna, Crystal Gayle, Sara Evans and more.
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While most of the artists delivered covers of songs from Patsy Cline’s impressive catalog, Pickler chose to sing a song she co-wrote with her late husband, Kyle Jacobs, that references Patsy Cline’s iconic hit, “I Fall To Pieces.” As she took the stage to sing “The Woman I Am,” the crowd gave the singer a standing ovation, a show of support for her return to the spotlight.
“I’d be lying if I didn’t say I was incredibly nervous right now,” she told the crowd. “It’s the first time I’ve been up on stage in a while.”
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Pickler shared that the song she was going to sing was written by her and Jacobs.
“My husband and I actually wrote this song together over a decade ago. The last time I was here in the Ryman Auditorium was with him on a date night. And I know he is here with us tonight,” she said.
Kellie Pickler’s late husband, Kyle Jacobs, died February 17, 2023, of an apparent suicide.
Kyle Jacobs and Kellie Pickler wed in 2011. The couple starred in the CMT reality series I Love Kellie Pickler for three seasons.
Jacobs was an award-winning songwriter with hits recorded by Garth Brooks (“More Than A Memory”), Trace Adkins (“I Can’t Outrun You”), Tim McGraw (“Still”), Kelly Clarkson (“The Sun Will Rise”), Scotty McCreery (“The Dash”), and more.
The Nashville Police Department responded to a call from Pickler and Jacobs’ home on February 17, 2023, where they found Jacobs deceased. Pickler told authorities that she was looking for Jacobs after she woke up that morning, but couldn’t find him. She and her personal assistant called police after they were unable to open an upstairs closet door.
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Officers found Jacobs deceased inside the closet from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Pickler issued a statement six months after Jacobs’ passing, but has otherwise remained silent since his death. In a statement issued to PEOPLE in August 2023, the “Red High Heels” singer said, “One of the most beautiful lessons my husband taught me was in a moment of a crisis, if you don’t know what to do, ‘do nothing, just be still.’ I have chosen to heed his advice.”