Darius Rucker on Loretta Lynn: ‘She Always Called Me Her Boyfriend’
Darius Rucker was in Nashville this week (10/27) to celebrate some of his successes, including his song “Wagon Wheel” becoming Diamond Certified (selling 10 million copies), one of only four…
Darius Rucker was in Nashville this week (10/27) to celebrate some of his successes, including his song "Wagon Wheel" becoming Diamond Certified (selling 10 million copies), one of only four country songs to do so.
When he sat down to chat with the media before his party, he talked about his friend Loretta Lynn, who died earlier this month at age 90. Darius said, "Loretta was wonderful to me. We became really good friends. She always called me her boyfriend, and we always had a great time together. When I first came to Nashville 16 years ago; Loretta was one of the first people who was singing my praises."
He continued, "I'll never forget looking at just a random article somebody sent to me, and they asked Loretta what she thought of country music, and she said, 'That Darius Rucker is country.' That was amazing to me. That was amazing to me that she even knew who I was, let alone to go out of her way to be that way to me and be that way in public, and I think that helped me a lot. So, we became really good friends, and she's always special."
Rucker added with a sigh, "I miss Loretta. I miss seeing her at the Opry. I miss seeing her at the CMAs and shows and stuff, and she always came up to me and gave me a big hug and made me feel like I was the most important person in her life in that moment, and I miss her. She was a wonderful human being."
Lynn will be honored in Nashville with a public memorial service Sunday (10/30) evening at the Grand Ole Opry House. Many country superstars will appear and perform at the service, including Darius, Lynn's sister Crystal Gayle, Faith Hill, George Strait, The Highwomen's Brandi Carlile, Amanda Shires and Natalie Hemby with Brittney Spencer, Keith Urban, Little Big Town, Margo Price, Martina McBride, Tim McGraw, Sheryl Crow, Tanya Tucker, Wynonna and more.
We've had to say goodbye to some big names this year in the worlds of entertainment and beyond.
Scroll through the gallery below to see the musicians, celebrities and other cultural figures we've lost in 2022
Sidney Poitier
Evening Standard/Getty Images
Bob Saget
Mike Coppola/Getty Images
Ronnie Spector
Jack Kay/Daily Express/Getty Images
Peter Bogdanovich
Araya Diaz/Getty Images
André Leon Talley
Cindy Ord/Getty Images
Gaspard Ulliel
Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images
Woodstock Music Festival co-producer Micael Lang
Michael Loccisano/Getty Images
Meat Loaf
Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images
Louie Anderson
Ethan Miller/Getty Images
Howard Hesseman
Matthew Peyton/Getty Images
Miss USA 2019 Cheslie Kryst
Bruce Bennett/Getty Images
Mark Lanegan
Mark Davis/Getty Images
Gary Brooker
Evening Standard/Hulton Archive/Getty Images
Ivan Reitman
Theo Wargo/Getty Images
Traci Braxton
Theo Wargo/Getty Images
William Hurt
Charley Gallay/Getty Images
Scott Hall
Larry Busacca/Getty Images
Taylor Hawkins
Scott Dudelson/Getty Images
Tom Parker of The Wanted
Frazer Harrison/Getty Images
Gilbert Gottfried
Kevin Winter/Getty Images
Robert Morse
Frazer Harrison/Getty Images
Madeleine Albright
Mark Wilson/Getty Images
Naomi Judd
Stephen Cohen/Getty Images
Alan White, drummer for Yes
Mike Coppola/Getty Images
Andy Fletcher, keyboardist/co-founder of Depeche Mode
Gustavo Caballero/Getty Images
Alec John Such, original Bon Jovi bassist
Theo Wargo/Getty Images For The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
James Caan
Matt Carr/Getty Images
Tony Sirico
Michael Loccisano/Getty Images
Ivana Trump
(Photo by Dave Kotinsky/Getty Images)Dave Kotinsky/Getty Images
William Hart, Lead Singer Of The Delfonics
Don Paulsen/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
Paul Sorvino
Kevin Winter/Getty Images
Tony Dow
Hulton Archive/Getty Images
Bill Russell
Ethan Miller/Getty Images
Nichelle Nichols
(Photo by Chelsea Guglielmino/Getty Images)Chelsea Guglielmino/Getty Images
Olivia Newton-John
Cole Bennetts/Getty Images
Joe E. Tata (Nat from Beverly Hills, 90210)
Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images
Mikhail Gorbachev
Photo by White House Photos/Getty Images
Bernard Shaw
Photo by Mark Mainz/Getty Images
Queen Elizabeth II
Stuart C. Wilson/Getty Images
Ken Starr
Photo By Pool/Getty Images
Louise Fletcher (Nurse Ratched from 'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest')
David Livingston/Getty Images
Coolio
Brad Barket/Getty Images
Wrestling icon Antonio Inoki
Koichi Kamoshida/Getty Images
Sacheen Littlefeather
Frazer Harrison/Getty Images
Loretta Lynn
Terry Wyatt/Getty Images
Angela Lansbury
Evan Agostini/Getty Images
Robbie Coltrane
Ian Gavan/Getty Images
Leslie Jordan
Vivien Killilea/Getty Images
Jerry Lee Lewis
Evening Standard/Getty Images
Julie Powell
Astrid Stawiarz/Getty Images
Jeff Cook of Alabama
Kevin Winter/Getty Images
Kevin Conroy
Chelsea Guglielmino/Getty Images
Dan McCafferty of Nazareth
Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty Images
John Aniston
Stephen Shugerman/Getty Images
Jason David Frank
Daniel Zuchnik/Getty Images
Irene Cara
United Artists/Archive Photos/Getty Images
Christine McVie
Davidson/Evening Standard/Hulton Archive/Getty Images
Wilko Johnson
Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images
Gaylord Perry
Jim McIsaac/Getty Images
Brad William Henke
Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images
Bob McGrath of 'Sesame Street'
Michael Loccisano/Getty Images
Kirstie Alley
Bryan Bedder/Getty Images
Mills Lane
Ken Levine /Allsport/Getty Images
Dorothy Pitman Hughes
Monica Schipper/Getty Images
Stephen "tWitch" Boss
Dia Dipasupil/Getty Images
Billie Moore
Gary Newkirk/Allsport/Getty Images
Dino Danelli
Don Paulsen/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
Ray Liotta
Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images
Vin Scully
Jayne Kamin-Oncea/Getty Images
Terry Hall
Mark Metcalfe/Getty Images
Fighters Only World Mixed Martial Arts Awards 2011
Ethan Miller/Getty Images
Pele
Xavi Torrent/Getty Images
Vivienne Westwood
Francois Durand/Getty Images
