Beloved Country Music Couple Divorcing After 10-Year Marriage

Country stars Jason Isbell and Amanda Shires are calling it quits. The Grammy-winning Americana singer, 45, reportedly filed for divorce from Shires, 41, on Dec. 15 after 10 years of marriage, according to documents obtained by WhiskeyRiff.The petition was filed in Williamson County outside of Nashville just two months before the pair would have celebrated their 11th wedding anniversary.

Neither Isbell nor Shires have publicly commented on their reported separation at this time, and a reason for the divorce is not known. Eagle-eyed fans began speculating that the couple may have been experiencing marital troubles after Shires shared a birthday tribute to Isbell earlier this month and later took it down. That same day, the former couple unfollowed each other on Instagram. They also have not been photographed together in several months, and Shires was not in the audience in support of her husband when Isbell took home two Grammys at this year’s annual award show, including Best American Roots song and Best Americana album.

While the former couple has not commented on the reports, they have been open about their relationship in the past. Following the 2020 release of Isbell’s album Reunions, Isbell revealed to The New York Times that while making the album, he pushed everyone away, including his wife. He recalled how “at one point, I said, ‘It’d be easier if somebody had cheated.’ Then we could say, ‘You did this,’ or ‘I did this,’ and ‘Somebody needs to be real sorry.’ But it was more like, ‘We don’t know each other right now. We’re not able to speak the same language.’” Shires, who moved into a hotel for 10 days in 2020 because “lines were getting crossed” and she “needed space,” detailed the difficult time from her point of view on the 2022 song “Fault Lines.”

In the years after, the couple continued to be open about their marriage, with Shires telling PEOPLE in 2022, “It doesn’t matter if you’re a quasi-famous person like Jason or me, everybody’s relationships are the same; there’s up and downs and there’s good and bad and you just try to deal with it. Life’s not easy, marriage isn’t easy, but aren’t we lucky to be able to live?”

Shires and Isbell – who share daughter Mercy, 8 – tied the knot in 2013 after two years of dating and following Isbell’s decision to get sober the previous year and time in rehab. Throughout their marriage, they have collaborated on numerous projects, Isbell’s Southeastern album, on which Shires performed vocals and fiddle. Shires, who is a member of The Highwomen, has featured on every album Isbell has released over the last decade, including his most recent album Weathervanes in 2023. She has also toured with Isbell and is currently still listed as an opener for two dates on Isbell’s current tour. It is unclear if those plans will change amid news of their separation.