"I kind of permitted myself to unravel," the songstress confessed to SiriusXM while reflecting on the mental hardships she encountered during her separation from her ex-spouse last year.
Maren Morris reflects on a tumultuous year.
In an August appearance on SiriusXM’s "Fierce: Women in Music", the 34-year-old singer-songwriter divulged the mental challenges she faced amidst her divorce from country musician Ryan Hurd, with whom she parted ways last year after five years of matrimony.
Morris shared that the strain of her personal life reached a boiling point while she was opening for The Chicks during their 2023 world tour last autumn.
"It happened in Toronto last year; we were opening for The Chicks, and things at home weren't feeling right. During soundcheck, I had what I can only describe as a mental... well, it was just a panic attack," the artist revealed. "I managed to perform, but there were many contributing factors."
"Life doesn't wait for the ideal moment for you to break down within the safety of your bedroom," she added. "Sometimes, you have to gather your courage and proceed with the show regardless."
Morris also conveyed the difficulty of maintaining a brave front while balancing her career and parenting her son, Hayes Andrew, whom she shares with Hurd. "You still have to be a mother, even when everything in your life has collapsed, whether it’s that day or that year. It’s like shielding a 4-year-old from the chaos," she continued.
She noted that when she finally felt secure enough to release her emotions, she "kind of let myself unravel." "Once everything had ended and was finalized, that’s when I thought, ‘Okay, now I can cry,’" she explained. "We have to remain steady throughout the process."
Later in the interview, the "Push Me Over" singer revealed that she continued to work on her music despite her divorce from Hurd, 37, even attending songwriting sessions the same week she filed in October 2023.
"The week I filed for divorce, I had writing sessions all week, with people flying in from [Los Angeles] to Nashville. I didn’t want to cancel because they had traveled to write with me," she explained. "I felt obligated, even in that darkness."
Recalling the events of that week, Morris mentioned how her friends from L.A. reacted with, "'Oh my God.' They didn’t know I had planned to do that on Monday." "They asked, 'Are you sure you want to be here? We can cancel,' but I insisted, ‘No, I need to be here. I can’t go home.’"
Morris expressed similar feelings about working through her divorce during a recent discussing her latest EP, "Intermission", which debuted on Aug. 2.
"I wrote through some incredibly tough weeks when I could have just canceled my sessions," she shared, "but I’m grateful I didn’t because I wanted to capture my raw experience, even in the most heartbreaking moments, and find my way back to the surface through each song."
The Grammy winner also spoke candidly about continuing to perform songs inspired by or co-written with her ex-husband, despite the lingering pain. "There’s still a place for songs written about someone who was once the love of your life," Morris added. "In some ways, I don’t want to say I go on autopilot to avoid the pain, but it is what it is."
"Those songs hold significance for others, and that’s a gift," she concluded. "I don’t look back on them with shame or regret. It was a beautiful time, even though it didn’t last, and the songs still matter."
The Quran - Chapter At-Talaq : 08
˹Imagine˺ how many societies rebelled against the commandments of their Lord and His messengers, so We called each ˹society˺ to a severe account and subjected them to a horrible punishment.
