Country singer Naomi Judd left daughters Wynonna and Ashley out of her will

Wynonna Judd, left and mother Naomi, right, pose on the set before a taping of Naomi Judd's television show in this file picture. (AP Photo/Rick Maiman)

Wynonna Judd, left and mother Naomi, right, pose on the set before a taping of Naomi Judd's television show in this file picture. (AP Photo/Rick Maiman)

Published Aug 2, 2022

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Country singer Naomi Judd has left her daughters Wynonna and Ashley out of her will.

She appointed her husband of 33 years, Larry Strickland, as executor of her estate, giving him “full authority and discretion” over her assets “without the approval of any court”.

Judd, 76, shot herself dead in an upstairs room of her Tennessee farmhouse on April 30 after a long battle with her mental health.

She prepared her will in November 2017, almost five years before her suicide, and was judged of “sound mind and disposing memory” when she approved the document.

Judd was a member of the country music duo The Judds, alongside her eldest daughter, Wynonna, 58, who is reportedly upset by the decision.

Judd's will states that Strickland is entitled to “reasonable compensation” for his services as executor, according to the document seen by Page Six.

A source close to Wynonna told Radar Online that the singer was angry she was excluded from Judd’s will and “believes she was a major force behind her mother’s success”.

Both daughters had homes on Judd’s 400 hectare farm in greater Nashville but it is unclear if Wynonna and Ashley's properties are considered part of Judd’s estate.

It comes days after actress Ashley, 54, told grief expert David Kessler, 63, on his ‘Healing’ podcast about her mum’s death: “It was abrupt and painful and my world is upside-down.

Singer Naomi Judd performs at the Stagecoach Music Festival in Indio, California. (AP Photo/Dan Steinberg)

“I look back on my childhood and I realise I grew up with a mom who had an undiagnosed and untreated mental illness.”

She recalled the “different behavioural expressions, interactions, flights of fancy, choices” made by her mum and said “I understand were an expression of the disease”.

Ashley added: “I understand that and know that she was in pain and can today understand that she was absolutely doing the best she could, and if she could have done it differently, she would have.”