HURRICANE MILLS, Tenn. — Country music superstar and Eastern Kentucky native Loretta Lynn has died.
“Our precious mom, Loretta Lynn, passed away peacefully this morning, October 4, in her sleep at home at her beloved ranch in Hurricane Mills,” her family announced on Lynn’s Twitter account Tuesday morning. The family asked for privacy while they grieve and said an announcement about a memorial would be made later.
“Today, all of Kentucky mourns the loss of our very own Loretta Lynn,” Gov. Andy Beshear said in a statement. “She was a legend who blazed a trail in country music while telling the stories of Appalachia and Kentucky. She will be greatly missed, but her words and impact will live on forever.”
“Kentuckians are mourning the loss of Loretta Lynn, the artist whose songs defined the unique history and culture of Appalachia to a generation of Americans,” U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell said. “As a coal miner’s daughter from Butcher Holler, Kentucky, Loretta Lynn was not typical of the country music stars who burst onto the national stage in Nashville in the 1960s and 70s. She was tough, confident, and, above all, honest about life in rural Kentucky. But though the topics of her songs could be painful, the twang of her guitar and the richness of her voice declared a love for the mountains and people of Eastern Kentucky that shone through to millions of listeners. Along with all of Loretta’s fans, Elaine and I are mourning the loss of this trailblazing Kentuckian and sharing our prayers with her children, grandchildren, and all whom she touched over the course of her career.”
Lynn grew up as one of eight children in Butcher Hollow in Van Lear. After marrying Oliver Vanetta “Doolittle” Lynn in 1948, she taught herself to play guitar in the 1950s, then began performing and released her first record, “I’m A Honky Tonk Girl,” in 1960.
From there, she went on to become the most awarded female musician in country music history, the only woman to win ACM Artist of the Decade in the 1970s, and won three Grammys on 18 nominations. She released 24 number-one singles and 11 number-one albums in her career.
Her already successful music career was cemented as legendary with the 1976 release of her biography, “Coal Miner’s Daughter,” named after the 1971 song and album of the same name. The book went on to become a movie in 1980, earning seven Academy Award nominations and an Oscar for Best Actress for Sissy Spacek, who portrayed Lynn in the film.
Loretta Lynn was 90 years old.
