Thomas Rhett and Lauren Akins‘ love story, from start to present day.
A true country music listener knows that Thomas Rhett and his wife, Lauren Akins, have been living a real-life love story that is admired and adored by fans from all around the world. For those dedicated fans, we’re going to dive deep into the couple’s relationship timeline and tell you everything we know about them – how they met, what they’ve been through, and where they are now.
Rhett and Lauren Akins met in elementary school.
For many who don’t know, they first met each other in the ’90s in a Nashville elementary school. They became friends but didn’t really know each other until 6th grade when they ended up going to the same summer camp.
“I was in camp, when I was in the sixth grade, and it truly was with my wife who I am married to today,” Thomas Rhett told British GQ in 2019. “Even though the feeling was not reciprocated in the sixth grade, I already knew I was in love with her. I know that sounds unbelievable, but it’s true.”
In 2006, when they were both 15, they started dating. However, it didn’t work out and they broke it off but still remained best friends even after the breakup. They dated other people for five years until 2011 when they finally reunited again at Akins’ sister’s graduation party.
“I’d loved that girl since high school, and I told her father how I felt. He said, ‘If you don’t tell her, I’m going to,'” Thomas Rhett told PEOPLE. “It was a total Ryan Gosling moment. I said to her, ‘I just want to kiss you one time. If you don’t feel anything, we can go back to being friends.’ “
Akin also wrote in her memoir, Live in Love: Growing Together Through Life’s Changes, adding to that kiss, “That one moment, that one kiss on my parents’ front porch, changed everything.”
Thomas Rhett asks Lauren Akins to marry him.
They dated for six months until December of 2011 when on one evening at a hotel, Rhett took a wine bottle and wrote “Marry Me?” on it. Lauren grabbed the bottle and wrote her response on the label, “Well duh, yes.”Â
The two got married on October 12, 2012, in Nashville, Tenneessee, and Rhett’s dad said, “When I saw them stare at each other the entire 20 minutes they were saying their vows, it’s like these two people are meant to be together.”
After the wedding, the newlyweds took a honeymoon trip to Hawaii and the new bride shared a photo from the trip on her Instagram.
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Thomas Rhett wrote “Die a Happy Man” for his wife.
Three years later, in September of 2015, Rhett released a love song written for his wife called “Die a Happy Man.” It peaked at number 21 on Billboard’s Hot 100. Akins later appeared in the music video to the song and in 2016 at the Country Music Awards where the song won single of the year.
“I wrote the song for her and about her,” he told PEOPLE. “I really did just wake up one day and was like, ‘I have yet to write a song about her.'”
Doing charity work for orphans.
In October 2016, the couple organized and hosted a charity concert in Nashville and raised over $250,000 that went to 147 Million Orphans, which is an organization that Akins has worked with in the past.
“This event was spurred by Lauren’s heart and 147 Million Orphans’ heart and by how much they love those kids,” Rhett told PEOPLE. “We both have a huge heart for orphans and I think definitely one day we’d want to [adopt].”
Adopting an 18-month-old baby girl from Uganda.
Just six months before the charity concert, Akins were doing philanthropy work in Uganda and the couple fell in love with one particular little girl. It wasn’t long before they started the adoption process to have her join their family.
On top of that, in December 2016, Thomas and Lauren also found out that she was unexpectedly pregnant!
“I was 100 percent sure I was not pregnant,” Akins said to PEOPLE, explaining they tried to get pregnant for some time with no luck and stopped when they decided to adopt. “We could not be happier. We feel like 2017 is going to be our big year.”
The public announcement of her pregnancy came in February 2017. Five months later they brought their 18-month-old daughter, Willa Gray, from Uganda to Tennessee to live with them.
“I can’t believe our daughter is finally home. Thank you to everyone who prayed every single day for this sweet girl,” Thomas Rhett tweeted.
“Lauren slept in a beanbag last night and I slept on the couch so we could be close to her room, just in case, ’cause she’s never slept in a room by herself before,” Rhett told PEOPLE.
Welcoming their second daughter to the family.
In August 2017, the couple welcomed their second daughter, Ada James, into the family.
“Last night at 10:28 PM, Ada James Akins was born and it was truly the most amazing thing I have ever experienced,” he wrote on social media. “I can’t believe that we have two daughters!! My wife @laur_akins labored almost 36 hours. She is by far the strongest human being I have ever met and I have a newfound respect for moms around the world. We are so excited that Willa Gray has a baby sister!”
September 2017 rolled around and the couple, along with their two daughters, appeared on the magazine cover of PEOPLE. During that photoshoot they did an interview with the magazine company were they were asked why they named their newborn Ada.
“Ada means happy,” Akins said. “It was beautiful, and I thought, ‘Well, she’s the happiest little surprise we’ve ever had.'”
Rhett added saying, “When I saw Ada come into the world, it was literally the most miraculous thing I’ve ever seen.”Â
Fast forward to July 2019 and the family of four announced that they are expecting another baby girl and will soon be a family of five.
“Excited to share that I will now be paying for 3 weddings,” he wrote. “I feel so blessed to say that our third child is on the way and it’s a girl!! I love you so much @laur_akins. WG and AJ, y’all are gonna be the best big sisters! Bring on the crazy.”
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Akins shows love to her husband at the CMA Awards.
Lauren Akins presented Thomas Rhett with a CMA award in 2019 after he was nominated for CMA Artist of The Year. While on stage, Akins, who was pregnant with their third daughter, praised her husband for his hard work and the long hours he put into making sure the family had a good life.
“Spending 180 nights on the road, he’s away a lot, but even when we weren’t there with him, he kept his family in his heart, and in his music,” she said at the CMA awards.
They welcome their third daughter into the family.
Their third bundle of joy, Lennon Love, was welcomed into the world on February 10, 2020. Akins announced that their early Valentine’s Day present had two sisters who couldn’t be happier to finally get to kiss her little face.
“It was such a joy to watch this little angel be brought into the world,” Rhett wrote on social media at the time. “My wife is just incredible through the entire birth watching our kids meet Lennon for the first time was probably the sweetest thing I’ve ever seen in my whole life! Ada James and Willa Gray are going to be the best big sisters on the planet.”
Akins published a book revealing intimate moments of their lives.
In May 2020, Akins published a memoir called Live in Love: Growing Together Through Life’s Changes. According to her, the book is “a window into my life from when I was a little girl until now.” At the time, she said she hoped her vulnerability with the world would be an inspiration to someone.
Thomas Rhett also added some words in the book saying, “There’s a lot of pressure to portray that you have a perfect life, and family, and marriage, especially on social media and in the public eye. But that’s not reality, and it’s a lot to try to live up to.”
The book talked about the couple going through marriage counseling when she was pregnant and it was a really “humbling” experience for Rhett because Akins felt alone while he was “living life as usual.” However, they worked on things and learned that marriage is a lifelong commitment that takes time to adapt to and overcome obstacles.
Welcoming their fourth baby girl into the world.
Things got better and on May 9, 2021, they announced that they were going to be having their fourth daughter. They said they found out she was pregnant during a trip to Colorado after Akins kept feeling nauseous. After she took a test and it was positive, Rhett said he couldn’t wait to tell the family.
On November 15, 2021, Rhett and Akins announced that they welcomed Lillie Carolina into the family.
Rhett wrote on Instagram, “[Lauren] you are my hero. Watching a child being born is legit a miracle. 4 under 6 here we go!”
Later on in January 2022, while Rhett was promoting his album Where We Started, he told PEOPLE that they planned on adopting again, but for now, they’re going to take a break from birthing kids.
“We’re definitely going to take a small break from trying to have babies right now,” he said. “Adoption is a hundred percent on our brains. In the next four to five years, we would love to do that. And Willa Gray talks about it all the time. It’s been put on our hearts very heavily to do that again. We just don’t really know when.”
Celebrating birthdays and anniversaries.
A couple of months later in April 2022, on Thomas Rhett’s birthday, Akins posted a sweet photo of the family sitting together smiling and looking happy.
Akins wrote on Instagram, “Honey you are everything God knew we needed to be the best leader of our fam happy birthday cutie pie (**last Wednesday)! and happy album release (**last Friday)! YOU ARE THE BEST THING IN OUR LIFE and we are SO proud of you!!! We love celebrating you babe!”
Then on October 12, 2022, Rhett and Akins celebrated their 10th anniversary with Rhett sharing a video montage on social media that was a tribute to his wife. In the caption, he said he didn’t know if his wife was a real person or an angel. Adding, that he couldn’t have dreamed of a better life if he tried.
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What’s New for Thomas Rhett and Lauren in 2023?
In February 2023, Thomas started talking about having more kids with his wife.
“I think when me and Lauren first got married, five was the number. We’re sittin’ at a solid four right now. I don’t know, I think for us, it’s whatever the Lord has got in store,” he said. “Personally, selfishly, I’m good,” he said, adding that the kids he has now are already “pushing [the] boundaries.”
Other than talking about having more kids, a very intimate discussion was brought up on June 13, 2023, on Akins’ podcast, Live in Love, when Rhett opened up about dealing with his wife’s severe postpartum depression after having their third daughter.
“It was scary for me and there’s not many people you can talk to about that because you don’t want it to sound like you’re gossiping behind your wife’s back,” he told PEOPLE. “It’s not like you want to call a buddy and be like, ‘Hey, my wife is acting super strange.'”
Thomas said that it took weeks to convince his wife that she needed to see a doctor and he remembered feeling “hopeless” as he watched her personality go “dull.”
“It was amazing when she came out of it, the different human being she was,” Rhett said. “There was this loneliness about her. She’s not lonely. There was this unpeace about her, and she’s a peaceful person. Every attribute about her was the complete 180 of herself, and I’d never experienced that before.”
Since then, they have posted 4th of July pictures on Instagram, along with a short video of the couple modeling for the popular country lifestyle magazine, Southern Living.
Here’s the most recent information we have on the Akins’.
Other than updates about where Rhett’s playing music or new projects he’s working on, the most recent update about their lives was on October 12, 2023, on their 11th-year anniversary. Akins shared a photo of the couple and their four girls on the beach somewhere, dressed nicely, and making faces at the camera.
Rhett also shared a heartfelt messageg on his Instagram, “11 years married to this amazing woman. I can still remember what she looked like in first grade. I still remember how much taller than me she was at church camp in 6th grade. I still remember picking her up on our first date at 16. I still remember how fast my heart was beating when she walked down the aisle. Basically I remember it all so vividly. I can’t believe how much life we have gotten to share together. @laur_akins you have been and always will be my best friend. I thank God for you every single day. I love you so much. Thank you for loving me and everyone you know so well. Happy anniversary, you+me+4.”Â
Overall, through the ups and the downs, Rhett and Akins’ love for one another has proven itself to be big enough to overcome any obstacle that comes their way. And as fans, we can’t wait to see what these two get into next. Well, until this lovely couple releases new news about their life, that’s all for now folks! Enjoy Thomas Rhett’s new live acoustic-version music video below, which was released two weeks ago. It’s called “Star of the Show” and it’s a song written about his Akins.