Chris Daughtry Opens up About His ‘Guilt’ in Wake of Daughter and Mother’s Deaths

American Idol alum Chris Daughtry is opening up about the loss of his mother Sandra, and stepdaughter Hannah. Hannah died by suicide last fall. The 25-year-old was found dead by hanging by her boyfriend. His mother died from cancer. The two women died within days of one another, making grief for Daughtry that much heavier. In a recent interview with The Kelly Clarkson Show, the rocker spoke about how he’s coping. “I dealt with both differently, processed both losses very differently — the common denominator in both is the guilt. [Thinking], ‘I wish I would have said this. I wish I would’ve done this. I wish I would’ve called more,’” he admitted. He added that those moments of guilt are “the hardest because you can’t do anything about it. There’s always going to be reminders of what you could’ve done or whatever, and I tend to beat myself up a lot over it.”

Hannah and her 23-year-old brother Griffin are Daughtry’s wife Deanna’s children from a prior relationship. Daughtry, 41, and Deanna, 48, are the parents of twins Adalynn Rose and Noah James, 11, and have been together more than 20 years. In regards to the manner in which Hannah died, they revealed it to the public themselves to avoid chatter in the media. They initially said: “Our beloved Daughter Hannah Price passed away on November 12th, 2021. Much speculation has been made since that date, and after a full investigation by law enforcement we are now able to speak in further detail.”

The family noted that Hannah “was in and out of therapy and treatment centers” over the years after struggling with her mental health “from a young age.”

The young woman had many struggles. In the statement, they added: “As Hannah got older, she struggled to find her footing and began using drugs and often found herself in abusive relationships. Just months after losing her biological father to suicide, Hannah was the victim of a crime and was shot in the face. We did everything we could to support her and get her the help she needed to recover from these tragedies and get her life back on track. We had just recently made plans with Hannah for her to seek further treatment and move closer to the family.”