Country Stars Who Are Living With Serious Health Conditions

Carly Pearce, Mark Chesnutt and Colt Ford have all made headlines recently for serious medical problems, but they are not the only country stars living with serious illness.

For some country singers, living with chronic illness is simply a fact of life.

Legends including Kris Kristofferson and Willie Nelson are among the country singers living with various ailments, and they didn’t let it stop them. Kristofferson worked well into his later years before quietly retiring during the pandemic, while Nelson still tours and releases new music every year.

Alan Jackson has been living with a rare condition for a decade, and Shania Twain, Clay Walker and more have also maintained active, busy lives and careers while privately managing a host of various chronic illnesses.

Read on to discover which country singers are living with illness in the gallery below.

Sterling Whitaker is a Senior Writer and Senior Editor for Taste of Country. He focuses on celebrity real estate, as well as coverage of Yellowstone and related shows like 1883 and 1923. He’s interviewed cast members including Cole Hauser, Kelly Reilly, Sam Elliott and Harrison Ford, and Whitaker is also known for his in-depth interviews with country legends including Don Henley, Rodney Crowell, Trace Adkins, Ronnie Milsap, Ricky Skaggs and more.