Jennifer Nettles Says Being a Mom and Staying in the Country Music Industry Was ‘the Biggest Hurdle’

Being a country music star might be easy for Jennifer Nettles, but the Sugarland songstress admitted the fun and games were over when she welcomed her first child. While exclusively chatting with Closer Weekly at the 2019 CMA Awards on November 13, the proud mom of one got candid about the struggles of juggling a career and motherhood.

“I mean, look … to be a woman in this career and especially to be a mom and to have the success enough to then be able to support yourself, that you can bring your child with you and continue to do what you do — that’s such a big hurdle,” confessed the 45-year-old beauty, who shares 6-year-old son Magnus with husband Justin Miller.

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“That’s why we need to support women more because if they do better, they’re going to be able to actually take support with them on the road and still continue to do what they love and what we love them to do,” the legendary “Stuck Like Glue” singer continued. “Becoming a mom and staying in this business, that’s the biggest hurdle.”

Jennifer told Closer she hopes to instill certain lessons in her son as she and Justin — who tied the knot in 2011 — continue to raise him into a young man. “I hope to keep him grounded. He’s only six, so he’s not super aware in terms of what might be being in the public eye or celebrity or fame or anything like that,” she explained. “So we’ll see what messages he gets along the way!”

As she stepped out for the 53rd annual awards show on Wednesday night, the Grammy Award winner made quite the statement. Besides her effortless beauty, Jennifer hit the red carpet wearing a white pantsuit that featured a large, pink cape that read “play our ‘f–king records, please and thank you” written on the inside in large black letters.

The “All I Want to Do” songstress said she was inspired to make the bold display when she learned that the 2019 CMAs were “going to be celebrating women.” She gushed, “I thought, What a fantastic opportunity to take the conversation beyond the applause tonight and say in a bigger way what people have been trying to say for a long time!'”

Jennifer told Closer the Christian Siriano-designed ensemble was made to stand up for women who “are supremely underrepresented on country radio and country playlists.” “The longevity in the career isn’t there because the support isn’t there and we know what an impact women have had,” she insisted. “We’re going to see it tonight and everybody’s going to clap and have pride — it’s going to be amazing — but let’s take the message further and actually do more than that.”

Jennifer is so inspiring!

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