Lean Into It

(You guessed it, I own nothing)

Epilogue

This is meant to be read as a tv interview, a'la Robin Roberts' Road to the CMA Special that airs every year. So it's a little bit different writing style. Try to imagine how a news segment would run on Juliette. This just felt like the best way to finish up this story, by jumping ahead to see what happens. So put on your imagination hats and read and enjoy.

I would really, really like to know what you guys think, so please leave your input in the comments! Thanks for reading.

She was the hottest thing going in country music. A star, a sex symbol with a spitfire personality. Ten years ago, People Magazine called her breakout success "unparalleled in country, or any genre of music." Juliette Barnes was the one to watch.

She rode the wave of superstardom following the release of her quadruple platinum debut album, showing up on the covers of magazines and in cosmetics commercials. She was the all American "it girl." That success continued with her next two albums also going multiplatinum. She was nominated for countless awards over the years, was touring the world with stops dominated by sold out shows. Everyone thought she had it all.

But no one could imagine the speed at which America's sweetheart could fall from grace.

ABC news recently visited Juliette on her property just outside of Nashville. It's where she has lived, in a modest but beautifully renovated 1850s farm house, for the past six years. She showed us the land that is filled with a long history of country music royalty.

"I love it out here," she said as she showed us her favorite spot, under an old oak tree beside a lake. "You know, Tammy Wynette used to own this land. I can't help but feel that's why there is something magical in the air."

In 2013, Juliette's personal life took a turn for the worse and landed her tabloid headlines of a less than flattering nature. Scandal after scandal came to light, beginning with a shoplifting scandal involving a bottle of nail polish, caught on camera and put on youtube for the world to see. She left professional football player Sean Butler at the alter after a messy broken engagement. Neither one has ever talked about it publically. Possibly the saddest turn in Juliette's journey was the loss of her mother in a murder suicide. The police ruled it a drug deal gone bad, as her mother Jolene was a known addict, who had just completed a stint in rehab months earlier. An alleged affair with married billionaire mogul the late Charles Wentworth, who died in a private plane crash in 2015, followed.

But things began to look up for her at the Grammys the next year. She stunned the crowd with the haunting ballad 'Dreams' and won the coveted gramaphone alongside legendary Rayna Jaymes for their duet 'Wrong Song.' It would not be the last time the pair collaborated.

Barnes most recent project, due out next week, is called "The Truth About Me" and it is her most personal album to date. She wrote or co-wrote every song on the album. We asked her about it as we sat with her on the front porch of her beloved farm house.

"Is this record autobiographical?"

"I think in a lot of ways, it absolutely is. These songs were written over the course of the past seven or so years, they just never had a place on a record until now."

"Were they too personal? Because, listening to the lyrics, they seem like they really come from deep within you."

"I think if you asked any writer if their songs were personal, they'd say yes. That's where the best songs come from. And in this case, it's no different. I guess I just decided to put all of the songs that could be deemed super personal on one album. You know, it's no secret that I've been through some tough times. But over the years, I realized that everyone goes through times like that. I'm not special. I would hope that this record could be a source of hope for people."

That's when our interview took a turn into a part of her life that has been kept under wraps, until now.

"Tell me about the song 'Sweet Abby Ray.' That obviously came from a darker place?"

Hesitating a bit, Barnes took a deep breath and told us the real story behind the most powerful songs she's ever recorded.

"At the time I left Edgehill Republic, I was pregnant. I wanted to keep that part of my life private, away from the cameras and paparazzi. So I moved out here to get away from that. The whole story is complicated, and I won't go into details, but when it came down to it, I just needed to keep that for me. I was scared to death. Scared that I wouldn't be a good mother. Scared I would screw up like my own mom did. I didn't have a clue what I was doing, but I knew I loved that baby..."

Her voice drifted off and small tears formed in her eyes. The obvious question hung in the air. "What happened?"

Glancing over at her manager and her husband both standing just off camera, she told of their heartbreaking loss. "We lost her. Her name was Abigail Ray Barnes Barkley. I was about 25 weeks along in my pregnancy when I suffered some complications. They delivered her but there wasn't much chance of her surviving. She lived for about 24 hours."

"That must have been horrible for you. How did you survive it?"

"I almost didn't. But for the grace of God and an amazing medical team, I lived. Emotionally, it was difficult. It took ... a while. I was in denial for a long time, unable to come to grips with the fact that I wasn't the cause of it. That I wasn't a failure as a mother. It was just something that was out of my control. But it was heartbreaking. Fortunately, I wasn't alone. Avery never left my side. Through any of it. It was then that I realized that life really is easier when you just open your heart and let someone love you. Before that, commitment was the scariest word anyone could have said to me. But there is no way I would have gotten through it and moved forward without him."

Avery of course is Juliette's husband, and mega producer, Avery Barkley. Previously a virtual unknown in Nashville, he garnered attention by producing Juliette's first album for Jaymes' Highway 65 record label. The record produced huge crossover success for the star, earning her four more Grammys including the big one, Record of the Year, which they got to accept on stage together. Since then he has been the driving force behind songs for both her and Jaymes, as well as Will Lexington, Deacon Clayborne and most recently the successful debut album by Jaymes' daughters, The Conrad Sisters.

"Do you enjoy working with your husband?"

The smile on her face is unmistakable. "I do. I love it. Ever since we met, he's had a way of making me feel at ease in my own skin. I never felt that in the studio before him. But I also love to hear him work on other people's records as well. It's a good balance for us."

And their time is also balanced with chasing around a pair of happy, healthy two-and-a-half year olds, who we watched toddling around with their dad in the yard during our conversation. "They're twins. Do they have similar personalities?"

With a hearty laugh and a shake of the head, she answers with a grin. "Not at all! Ainsley is very much like her daddy. She's got an old soul, even at two. She's very introspective and quiet. And Alexander is just like me, poor kid. He's always wanting to be right in the middle of the action and he has no filter. Whatever he thinks, he says. So that's something we will be working on before kindergarten starts," she says, more laughter lilting off her lips.

"You look like motherhood agrees with you. Were you afraid of it, after losing your first daughter?"

"I think for a while I was so adamantly against having more children. I was afraid of going through that kind of loss again and I honestly didn't think I'd survive another blow like what happened with my baby girl. I felt like I had become the failure that my mother was."

"What changed your mind?" I asked after capturing a special moment of the family spending time under that old oak tree by the lake, which now holds a swing, perfect for their two growing kids.

"Avery. I saw him with our friends' children. I knew I couldn't let my fear keep him from being a father. And deep down, I wanted it too. I was just too scared to do anything about it."

"And now you have two!"

"We got two for the price of one."

"Any more in the future?"

"No!" she says with a giggle. "We are done with these two. I don't know that I could handle another one while chasing them around. The only projects Avery and I will be collaborating on will of the musical variety."

"Where do you want to be in 30 years?"

"Wow! What a question. Um, honestly? Right here. I want to be sitting on that porch swing with my husband, maybe watching grandkids playing out in the yard by that point."

"Still making music?"

"Sure. But at what level ... who knows. The fame and the bright lights ... they all fade. Maybe I'll get a Tuesday night slot at the Bluebird. Who knows. Family is the one constant that I never had in my life until six years ago. And I don't ever, ever want to be without it again."

Love, motherhood and talent, mixed with the trials of Juliette Barnes' past have combined to create a unique sense of reality for the star. At 31, she has finally found the peace that she longed for in her early twenties, and grown to become one of the most consistently solid country music artists of her generation. Like her new album, she has come to a place in her life where she is open and ready to show the world who she really is.

Thanks so much for reading! Don't forget to let me know what you think in the Reviews!