When she discovered music, she formed a duo with the man who would become her first husband. Together, they conceived two children but sadly lost one, and later, she reunited with a college flame.
This country music singer endured many hardships before finding love again and settling down. Eventually, she and the man of her dreams moved back to their hometown. But first, here’s a look at her first marriage to a famous singer.
The Songstress’s Abusive Marriage and the Loss of a Child
Born on May 1, 1945, in Lafayette, Tennessee, the singer and actress studied at Florida State University (FSU) and graduated in 1967 with a degree in art. However, her true passion was music, and she soon became a sought-after studio singer.
She began her career at a Memphis jingle company before working with top bands in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Eventually, she rose to fame as a chart-topping artist, releasing multiple hits from the mid-70s through the 80s.
The star, recognized for her roles in 1983’s “Octopussy,” 1984’s “Splash,” and 2001’s “Christmas in the Clouds,” has been married twice. She married her first husband, the renowned musician Kris Kristofferson, on August 17, 1973. Their marriage lasted six years.
The star met Kristofferson on a flight from Los Angeles to Memphis in 1971. Laughing, the actress joked, “I like to say that it was ‘love at first flight.'” She also shared that they talked throughout the entire flight to their destination.
Their relationship blossomed quickly, with Kristofferson canceling a business trip to Nashville to stay with her. By the end of that first night together—and even before falling asleep—they had already chosen a name for their future child. The actress admitted, “There was no doubt in my mind that we were going to be together.”
Reflecting on their marriage, the singer said, “People were fascinated with us as a couple.” However, she eventually found his drinking and cheating intolerable. Nicknamed “The Delta Lady,” the songstress opened up about their relationship in her 2016 book, “Delta Lady: A Memoir.”
She explained, “My intention was never to vilify Kris in this book and [sic] I don’t believe that I did. I think I made it clear how much I care about this man, how much I’ve always loved him.” She also addressed the criticism that she used her husband’s fame to boost her own career.
According to her, Kristofferson didn’t have hit records at the time of their concerts, but she did. The star stated, “We were equal in our jobs and in our relationship.” One of the more painful aspects of their marriage was the emotional abuse she experienced, including his tendency to belittle her talent.
She recalled, “I was a recording artist. I was making an album every year or two and I think that’s what he wanted really more than anything, but the films just kept coming at him and he made the choice. [sic]”
Although she acknowledged that Kristofferson might have believed she was abusive to him as well, she didn’t feel that was the case. Describing the impact of his abuse, she said, “It was not all the time. It was just enough that I cried every day, and that’s not a good way to live.”
While Kristofferson was not generally physically abusive, he once hit her while drunk—an incident that never occurred again. In 1977, she was 33 and one of the most in-demand rock ‘n’ roll vocalists in Los Angeles.
Throughout the 1970s, they performed together and eventually won two Grammy Awards as a duo, while she received three individual nominations. One of their wins was for Best Country Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group for “Lover Please.”
That same year, the couple had just finished recording her sixth solo album. However, their marriage was unraveling, and she had recently suffered a miscarriage. Their only surviving child is their daughter, Casey Kristofferson.
The couple eventually divorced on June 26, 1980. The actress asked for nothing from her ex. Explaining her decision, she said, “I didn’t feel I was doing her any favours [sic] by going the distance when clearly her parents were not in harmony.” Despite their split, the former couple remained close.
The singer, best known for her 1977 hit “Higher and Higher,” shared in 2016 that even though she and Kristofferson divorced, they remained connected. She said, “Kris and I have a connection and we laugh at stuff that nobody else gets,” and added, “We just have a bond that is beyond any kind of understanding.”
When asked about the possibility of performing together again, she replied, “Never say never.” At 70, she had already planned to return to the studio the following month to begin her 21st solo album.
However, she admitted she would “love for Kris to sing” on the album. She noted, “There are still people who would be happy if we came out in wheelchairs just to sing one more time.” Eventually, she found lasting love with her second husband.
An Old Flame and Lasting Bonds
When her memoir was released, she was living in California but returned to Tallahassee to promote her book at Word of the South. There, she reconnected with Joe Hutto, a man she had dated in college and bonded with over music.
Hutto, a Tallahassee native, met the singer at a beach house party shortly after beginning college. He brought his guitar instead of a date and started playing music, which drew her in. She sat beside him and joined him in singing.
They discovered they knew all the same songs. However, Hutto left the party without getting her name or number—a decision he soon regretted. Shortly afterward, he tracked her down at a downtown Tallahassee performance.
At the time, she had left her sorority to focus on the campus art scene. She was active in the local folk music community, regularly performing songs by artists such as Joan Baez and Eric Andersen.
Like the star, Hutto also pursued music professionally in the 1970s with the Tallahassee Band. He even recorded with country legend Tom T. Hall and others, but his path eventually led him elsewhere.
“I knew that was where I belonged,” he said, reflecting on his journey. “I’m not a savant by any means, but there was no doubt in my mind that she was on a trajectory, it was so apparent. I knew that wasn’t going to happen for me,” he added.
The couple went their separate ways when Hutto left FSU to join the military, while she graduated and pursued musical fame. In 1977, they saw each other briefly at the FSU Homecoming Pow Wow.
Hutto shared that they remained close, “Married to other people but best friends.” They spent years apart, with her admitting, “We lost each other for decades.” He avoided her concerts despite wanting to see her, afraid of causing a distraction.
Despite the distance, she always looked for him when visiting their hometown. Sometimes, she’d just missed him—he would return to Wyoming, or be around only for the summer.
In 2016, when she returned, Carol Swanson, Hutto’s friend, ran up to the stage before her talk and shouted, “Joe’s here! Joe Hutto’s here!” She responded, “Really? Where is he?!” Hutto later said, “I literally died.”
When they reunited, she decided to move back home. The singer recalled, “Seeing him again and walking into his arms, I was home! We’ve spent two years trying to wind up. I sold my house this past year and he sold his ranch in Wyoming and we just decided we wanted to live in Tallahassee.”
She described her return as going back to a place “where everything is alive and the frogs and the birds and wildlife”—a feeling she called “just fabulous!” The couple’s reunion came after decades apart, during which both had pursued their careers and married other people.
By 2019, Hutto, then a 74-year-old naturalist and author best known for “Illumination in the Flatwoods: A Season With the Wild Turkey,” had spent years building deep connections with wild animals.
Hutto now lives near Tallahassee, Florida, with Rita Coolidge. He was working on a new book titled “The Light in the Eye of the Deer: The Conscious Imperative in Biology,” which explores the belief that all living beings possess intelligent awareness.
In 2018, the pair married on their property in a ceremony attended by close friends and fellow musicians, including Graham Nash and Keb’ Mo’. They settled together on an eight-acre rustic property near a cypress marsh just south of the Georgia border.
The couple shares a strong bond not only with each other but also with the natural world around them. While the area’s biodiversity is part of its charm, not all experiences have been peaceful; a rabid fox once attacked Hutto on their land.
As a result, both he and Rita Coolidge—who turns 80 in 2025—along with two game wardens, underwent painful rabies treatments. The ordeal cost $85,000 in total. Despite it, their connection to nature and each other has only deepened. As Coolidge quipped, “We can play with baby raccoons now.”
The singer’s life journey is a testament to resilience, love, and the healing power of coming home. After weathering personal and professional storms, she found lasting peace and companionship in the arms of someone who knew her before the fame.
