Who is Stephen Wilson Jr’s wife? All about family amid country star’s viral rendition of stand by me at CMA

Stephen Wilson Jr. has been married to Leigh Nash, and the two have dealt with the usual relationship struggles over the years. Still, they stuck together and worked through what came their way.

A profile by NewReleaseToday traced Nash’s journey back to the Texas Hill Country, where she grew up listening to country radio and hearing mariachi bands around town. She wasn’t outgoing as a child, but singing helped her break out of her shell. She started performing young, joining a country band at just 13 for weekly shows in New Braunfels.

Before long, she found herself with Sixpence None the Richer, the group responsible for Kiss Me and There She Goes, songs that defined an era for many listeners. In February 2025, The Tennessean reported that Nash’s latest solo EP, The Tide, continued to show her leaning into collaborative, genre-spanning work. She said:

“I was put on Earth to use a voice that is not my own and requires me to be my best self to use it (for its greatest benefit).”

“Doing good makes people feel good on a conscious and subconscious level,” she explained, hinting that her mission was larger than commercial accolades.

At the same time, Stephen Wilson Jr has been getting his own wave of attention after delivering striking performances of Took a Walk and Stand By Me at the CMA Awards.

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Inside Shaboozey and Stephen Wilson Jr.’s stirring CMA awards performance

According to Billboard, Shaboozey and Stephen Wilson Jr. brought a heavy dose of emotion to the CMA Awards stage on Wednesday night (November 19). Their voices raw and earnest, they carried over the band’s understated arrangement. The two swapped verses before joining forces in the closing lines:

“So let’s stay out here for a while, my friend/ Let’s stay and walk the line ’til the end/ I know you’re tired, hell, so am I/ We can’t take the same road again.”

The duet came from The Long Walk, the latest film inspired by Stephen King’s work. Stephen Wilson Jr also stepped in front of the crowd to perform a heartfelt version of Ben E. King’s Stand By Me, filling Bridgestone Arena with a quiet intensity.

Speaking with Billboard ahead of the event, Stephen Wilson Jr said the two performances weren’t just scheduled back-to-back; they were connected through a deeper thread. He explained:

“I’m a big Stephen King fan, I play this song called ‘Stand By Me,’ which I’m playing tonight as well, because of a movie called Stand By Me based off a Stephen King [story called The Body]. It’s been haunting me my whole life.”

He added:

“Fast-forward these years later, I get invited to sing this song and write this song with Shaboozey for a Stephen King movie called The Long Walk, the world is weird, life is weird and I’m just here for it.”

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Inside Stephen Wilson Jr. and Leigh Nash’s pandemic love story: The fight that became a song

In a story published by American Songwriter on June 25, 2021, Leigh Nash reflected on a moment she wished had gone differently. She and her husband, Stephen Wilson Jr., had been arguing, and in the heat of it, she slammed a door and said, “I hate you.” The regret came soon after. Instead of letting the argument settle badly, the two came back together and ended up writing Made For This, a song that grew straight out of that exact vulnerable place.

The track emerged during the pandemic, a time when so many couples were navigating the tension of being homebound together. The song laid out the difficult parts of marriage and the simple truth that people make mistakes, and learn from them, all a part of being human. Nash explained:

“I wrote this song about the pandemic at first, but I realize it’s actually about all of us, the struggles we go through in everyday life, and the ability we have as humans to be truly resilient, the pandemic simply served to put a magnifying glass on it and forced us to examine ourselves, and each other, more closely.”

Stephen Wilson Jr spoke openly about the period as well:

“The pandemic wasn’t easy on any relationship at times, I’m sure. We were no different. This song came from a very raw place. We love like hell and fight like hell, too.”

Nash admitted they weren’t shy about conflict. She shared:

“We fight a lot, and I think for a lot of couples, this past year was a real test, obviously, people were cooped up together, so it’s gonna go one way or the other, but I think we did really well. We are a couple that’s the same in a lot of ways, but really different. Plus, we’re also in the same business, so I think that can sometimes cause friction.”