Sara Evans Reveals Husband's Reaction To 'Pride' In Emotional Podcast Debut

Sara Evans discussed details she’s “never spoken about” in a public setting during the debut episode of her podcast, Diving in Deep with Sara Evans, on Thursday (March 21). The beloved country artist and Grand Ole Opry star spoke about what happened when her husband was arrested, her divorce and more, at times getting emotional during the approximately hour-long podcast episode.

On the same day, Evans released “Pride,” a vulnerable ballad that the Missouri-born singer-songwriter previously described as “the most real song I have ever written and I am so grateful to be able to put it out into the world.” It’s the first song to debut as Evans prepares to release her next full-length studio album, Unbroke, arriving on June 7. She said as she made her album announcement, “we are just getting started.”

“In this debut episode, listeners learn the much anticipated story behind Sara’s newest single, ‘Pride,’ and hear first-hand the details of the trials of her relationship with husband, Jay Barker. Sara recounts the initial love story, revisits the challenges, and unveils for the first time the pivotal 2020 moment that led to a separation and divorce filing. She speaks about where they have landed today and the work that got them there. Raw. Reflective. Transformative.”

Evans, who also opened up about her experiences with her husband and her forthcoming chapter of music on The Bobby Bones Show on Thursday morning, reflected on the emotional process of writing and recording “Pride,” the first song she wrote for Unbroke. The country star and mother of three — to son Avery 24, daughter Olivia, 20, and daughter Audrey, 19 — said she was “terrified” to play the ballad for Barker, worried about hurting him or embarrassing him or his children.

“I wrote so many songs about our situation, and it’s funny because the album goes from my lowest point to where I was just, the kids had to say to me, ‘you are not OK.’ …So, the album is super interesting because it goes from my lowest point to somewhere in the middle, like, ‘I f***ing hate you,’ to well, now you’ve sent me this text and we’re seeing each other again, and I swear it’s so much like that George & Tammy show [the biography-drama series about the romance between George Jones and Tammy Wynette, played by Michael Shannon and Jessica Chastain], where they just couldn’t stay away from each other, or that’s how they depicted it in the show. And then the album ends with where we are now exactly. We are sort of ‘back in baby’s arms,’ to quote Patsy Cline’s song.”

Evans said she’d never written before with Sean McConnell and Madi Diaz; however, the self-proclaimed “open book” didn’t hold her honest emotions back from them on the day they wrote “Pride.” Evans said she was “super depressed” and told McConnell and Diaz about the night of her husband’s arrest, and expressed that she wanted to write music about the experience and the relationship. By the end, “we were all crying,” Evans said, admitting that she and her cowriters cried often during the writing process for her album.

“When Jay and I got back together, and I told him this in therapy. I said, ‘I’m angry because once again, everything’s on me. I’m the one that has to tell my friends that we’re back together. You have nothing to lose. All my friends are gonna be mad at me. I’m the one that has to tell the kids. I’m the one that has to convince the kids that he loves them and it’s gonna be OK, and I’m smart. I really am smart and I’m making a wise decision,’” Evans shared on her podcast as she spoke about “Pride.” “‘And now, I’m having to change this song, ‘Pride,’ that talks about really, really heavy, dark stuff.’ And I said, ‘if you want me to, I’ll change it to third person, to where instead of ‘you and me,’ it’s ‘he and she’’

“And Jay said, ‘absolutely not. You are going to say what you want. You’re gonna sing what you want because this is your story to tell, and our relationship has been so unfairly weighted in my side…so you sing that song and you record that song exactly as you wrote it,’” Evans said. “He can’t listen to it. and I asked him to leave the studio when it was time for us to record it, because again, I don’t wanna hurt him and I don’t wanna hurt his kids or my kids. I don’t want anyone to be embarrassed, or be like, ‘you’re just vomiting all this private information.’ ...‘You have to sing this song,’ I played it for him and he said, ‘you have to record this exactly as it was written, and it could help a lot of other people.’ He said, you know, ‘but it did happen to you. This is your story to tell.’ And that’s what I’m gonna do.”

If you or someone you know is currently navigating an abusive relationship, please know that support is available. The National Domestic Violence Hotline offers confidential assistance, resources, and a compassionate ear. You can reach out to them at 1-800-799-SAFE (7233), or visit their website at www.thehotline.org for invaluable information and safety planning tips. For those more comfortable with chat-based support, the National Domestic Violence Hotline provides a live chat feature on their website by texting “START” to 88788.

Watch the first episode of Diving in Deep with Sara Evans here (warning: language).