Was Lorrie Morgan married to Keith Whitley when he died? All we know as country music star's spouse Randy White dies at 72

Lorrie Morgan's husband, Randy White, passed away on 1 June at the age of 72 following a year-long battle with mouth cancer, as reported by People Magazine. Lorrie Morgan, who has been married six times, was previously married to bluegrass singing legend Keith Whitley for three years, until his untimely death in 1989.

Lorrie Morgan and Randy White married in 2010 and were together for seventeen years, having met back in 2008. In April, Lorrie Morgan took a break from touring to concentrate on her family due to her husband's declining health. Lorrie Morgan shared a statement through her manager, saying:

"Randy has been my partner and my rock for 17 years. Our big, wonderful family and I are devastated at the loss of this truly kind and incredible man. I was blessed by his love. Ran-Ran, I will love and miss you forever.”

More about Lorrie Morgan's marriage to her second husband, Keith Whitley

Lorrie Morgan was married to the then rising country music icon Keith Whitley from November 1986 to May 1989. The former couple were part of the thriving Nashville music scene and had met while Whitley was recording a song at the studio. Lorrie Morgan recounted the moment they met by saying:

"I was a receptionist ...during the lunch time or evening time I was also their demo singer. So I'd take my lunch break and come back and sing demos and this one particular day I went to the back of the building to get a coca cola out of the machine, and I heard somebody singing in the studio and I was like 'oh my god that is a beautiful voice' so I walked around and the guy was singing..so I walked in and was like 'who's singing ?' They said it was a guy named Keith Whitley, and I was like 'oh my, I am in love with this voice.'"

Lorrie Morgan further added that their respective managers introduced them, and some days later she went to see his performance and visited him backstage, where Whitley asked her out on a date.

The couple welcomed their first child, Jesse King Whitley, in June 1987. According to The Tennessean, Lorrie Morgan was previously married to Ron Gaddis from 1979 to 1981. The couple had one child, Morgan Anastasia Gadis. Later, Keith Whitley officially adopted Morgan, and her name was changed to Whitley when she was still a child. In a 2019 interview with the outlet, Jesse King Whitley, who was just two years old at the time of his father's death, talked about what it meant to visit an exhibition at the Country Music Hall of Fame Museum containing memorabilia once used by his father. He said,

"Now they have something that they can really, really appreciate and see the things that he’s written, the things that he’s worn. As his son, it don’t get no cooler than that, pointing at the case and knowing that everyone else gets to experience this with us as well. It’s a big-time honor for me to be a part of it. But mostly I’m just happy for him. Real legends never die.”

Lorrie Morgan said:

"We wanted to make the 30th anniversary a very special tribute to Keith. We’re just so excited about how many people are going to be here to honor Keith and sing his music.”

Keith Whitley had a long history of drinking problems. At the time of his death, according to Saving Country Music, Lorrie Morgan was away on promotional work, which led to Whitley being alone in his home. The tragedy occurred in May 1989, and Whitley was discovered by his brother-in-law, Lane Palmer, who found the "Don't Close Your Eyes" singer unconscious on his bed. He was rushed to the hospital, where he was declared dead at the age of thirty four. Although initially there were rumors about a possible suicide, his death was later ruled as alcohol poisoning.

In a 2024 interview with Whiskey Riff, Lorrie Morgan talked about Keith Whitley's struggles with alcohol and how she tried to help him even at the cost of her own career. She said,

"I thought as much as I loved Keith, surely that would help him. I feel in my own heart I kept Keith alive a lot longer because I was there all the time. I put everything on the back burner, including my career, to help Keith."

In the interview, she also recalled that the "Miami, My Army" singer had left her a letter, as he often would, right before his death. It read:

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"Would you like to know what I wish for you? If I could have any wish I wanted, this is my wish: That in your life which is so precious to me, may worries, troubles and problems never linger. May they only make you that much stronger and able and wise.May you rise each day with sunlight in your heart, success in your path, answers to your prayers, and that smile that I always love to see in your eyes. I love you, Keith."

Soon after the devastating incident, Lorrie Morgan would sign a major record deal with RCA Records, and that would pave the way for her decades-long success. In 2022, Keith Whitley was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame, an event that was attended by Lorrie Morgan, according to People Magazine.

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