All About the Judd Sisters, Wynonna Judd and Ashley Judd

Rebecca Aizin, Caroline Blair, Samantha StutsmanWed, May 13, 2026 at 4:36 PM UTC

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Ashley Judd and Wynonna Judd in 2022
Credit: Catherine Powell/Getty -

Wynonna Judd was born to Naomi Judd and her then-boyfriend in 1964

Ashley Judd was born to Naomi and her then-husband in 1968

Naomi and Wynonna were a singing duo called The Judds

Wynonna and Ashley Judd are in a season of healing.

The sisters’ interwoven family history dates back to childhood. Naomi Judd welcomed Wynonna in 1964 with her then-boyfriend, Charles Jordan. After they split, she married Michael Ciminella. The couple welcomed Ashley in 1968 before their divorce in 1972. Both siblings have spoken about growing up without their fathers in their lives.

While Naomi pursued a music career, Wynonna often found herself caring for Ashley — a role she has said was difficult because she wanted to be her sister, not her mother. When Wynonna was 18, she and Naomi formed the country duo The Judds and quickly rose to fame, leaving Ashley to navigate much of her adolescence on her own.

Naomi died by suicide at 76 in 2022, and in the wake of her death, Wynonna told Today that she and Ashley had grown closer than they’d been “in a long time.” Still, their relationship remains a work in progress. During a May 2025 appearance on Talking in Circles with Clint Black, Wynonna said she and Ashley are “not as close as I’d like to be.”

The family’s dynamics — including Wynonna and Naomi’s 2010 falling out — were explored in the Lifetime docuseries The Judd Family: Truth Be Told.

From growing up in the South to how they came together after their mom’s death, here’s everything to know about Wynonna and Ashley Judd's sister relationship.

They grew up in Kentucky and Tennessee

Ashley Judd, Naomi Judd and Wynonna Judd during APLA 6th Commitment to Life Concert Benefit.
Credit: Ke.Mazur/WireImage

Wynonna was born in Kentucky on May 30, 1964, to Naomi and her then-boyfriend Jordan. After their relationship ended, Naomi went on to marry Michael Ciminella. The pair welcomed their daughter, Ashley, on April 19, 1968, and they moved to Los Angeles.

Naomi and Ciminella divorced four years later, and Naomi moved back to Kentucky with her daughters in 1976. They moved again to Nashville in 1979, so that Naomi and Wynonna could pursue their country music careers.

Ashley called Wynonna “sister mommy” when they were younger

Ashley Judd and Wynonna Judd pose for a portrait circa November, 1991 in Los Angeles, California.
Credit: Ron Davis/Getty

In a televised interview with Dan Rather in 2015, Wynonna shared that growing up, she and Ashley were different, and the only thing they had in common was a missing father and a shared mother.

“We don't communicate nor do we spend time together,” Wynonna said at the time. “And that's a long history of being apart. I was away from Ashley at age 18. She was 14. And I think at 14, Ashley became independent of the family. I think out of necessity.”

The “No One Else on Earth” singer added that when they were young, Ashley saw her as a mother figure, which was difficult for Wynonna, who wanted to have more of a sisterly role.

“She called me 'Sister Mommy,' and I really had a hard time with that,” she said. “Because I was like, ‘I don't want to be your mommy. I want to be your sister.’ But the way life was, I was famous at 18. I wasn't there for her prom. I wasn't there as a sister.”

Wynonna and Ashley shared a farm with their mother

Wynonna Judd, Ashley Judd and Naomi Judd pose for a portrait during Ashley's movie premiere circa 1996 in Los Angeles, California.
Credit: Ron Davis/Getty

All of the Judd women lived on the same family farm in Nashville for some time before Naomi died. In 2016, Naomi gave Oprah a tour of the property, sharing that Ashley lived a one-minute car ride from her front door while Wynonna was six minutes away.

Naomi purchased the property in 1995 and called it “Peaceful Valley.” Both of her daughters lived over the hill, with Wynonna moving to the area with her two children, Elijah and Grace, in 2012.

They had different relationships with Naomi throughout their lives

Naomi Judd with her daughters Ashley Judd and Wynonna Judd on the red carpet during the annual YouthAIDS Benefit Gala on September 14, 2005 in Washington, D.C.
Credit: Chris Greenberg/Getty

When Wynonna was 18, she became part of the duo The Judds with her mom, and the two embarked on tours together, producing six albums in their time before Wynonna went solo. However, after their last tour in 2010, Wynonna and her mother had a falling out and stopped speaking.

“We've been together more than we've not,” she told Rather. “So it's really strange to go about this professionally. She's my mom. And we just don't talk.”

Naomi reflected on her relationship with both daughters in an interview with ABC News in 2016, sharing that she and Ashley had an easier time because they were more alike.

“Ashley and I are so stinkin' much alike,” she said. “I mean we have the same mannerisms. We both read a whole lot. We both love new places. I mean there's such similarities.”

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She added that with Wynonna, things could be difficult sometimes because she was the first child, so Naomi made some mistakes while raising her.

“From the day I knew she existed, it was the two of us against the world and then through the decades we kind of grew up together, 'cause it was really just the two of us,” she said. “And I'm always tellin' her, ‘If I'd known better, I would have done better.’ ”

Naomi added, “So Wy bore the brunt of all of the mistakes I made and we talk about 'em. We've been through a lot of therapy together.”

Wynonna helped Ashley recover after she shattered her leg

Ashley Judd and Wynonna Judd arrive to the Youth Aids Benefit held at Capitale, New York City.
Credit: Brian ZAK/Gamma-Rapho/Getty

In 2021, Ashley had a serious accident when she broke her leg after tripping in a forest in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, landing her in the ICU. The recovery process was long and arduous, leaving Ashley in a cast for some time.

She reached out to her older sister to help her with day-to-day tasks — including washing her hair.

"Therein lies the job of a big sister right there,” Wynonna told Page Six in March 2021. "She said, 'I have a request. Can you wash my hair?' I said, 'Sure,' so I'm looking up ways to wash someone's hair lying down."

They put feud rumors to rest after their mom died in 2022

Ashley Judd and Wynonna Judd speak onstage during Naomi Judd: 'A River Of Time' Celebration on May 15, 2022 in Nashville, Tennessee.
Credit: Mickey Bernal/Getty

After Naomi died, rumors swirled that Wynonna and Ashley were fighting over her estate and will. However, Wynonna put those to bed when she told PEOPLE in October 2022 that there’s “no argument” between the sisters.

"Someone told me while I was at Ashley's house, 'Hey, did you know that they're saying this about you?' I went, 'Huh? I'm fighting with Ashley? Oh. Again?' " she said. "Fighting over what? I have such a great life. Ashley has a great life. Why would we be fighting over the will?"

She added that her mother’s death only brought her and Ashley closer as they supported each other.

"I feel like we're connected in a way that is so different because I'm an orphan," Wynonna said. "Both my parents are gone, and I'm relying on Ashley. She's relying on me in a different way that's about compassion. It's not about being successful and smart and capable. It's about, 'I love you.' 'I love you, too.' We're vulnerable with each other, and we're tender."

The singer said that a life coach helped the sisters find a way to “communication, compromise and compassion,” leading her relationship with Ashley to become the “most powerful” in her life.

"Ashley and I are very different people, and we are learning that we have more in common than we don't," she said. "That's really interesting, because when you're younger, you think there's more disconnect. We had a really deep conversation the other day, and we got through it and nobody got hurt."

Ashley echoed similar sentiments on the Healing with David Kessler podcast a few months earlier, sharing that though they were in different stages of their grieving process, they still found ways to bond and show up for each other.

"Sister came over yesterday and spent the day with me and spent the night and we talked about mom, we talked about social issues," she said. "She gave me a foot rub and she's in a pretty different place than I am right now. And we don't have to be congruent in order to have compassion for each other and I think that that's a really important grace that family members can hopefully learn to give each other."

Ashley is working to heal her inner child after a tumultuous childhood

Ashley Judd in 2024.
Credit: Arturo Holmes/Getty

Ashley turned 58 in April 2026, but instead of simply marking another year, she used the milestone to honor her younger self.

"On my 58th birthday, my inner 12-year-old was ready to receive love, care, attunement, delight, protection, and provision," she wrote on Instagram, before reflecting on what life felt like for her at that age. "There was no parent (or adult) supporting, nurturing, guiding and reinforcing my learning, delighting in, or protecting that little girl."

To give that younger version of herself the celebration she felt she missed, Ashley restaged her 12th birthday surrounded by friends and family. She wrote that she "laughed, frolicked, square danced and ate a dream cake any 12-year-old would adore."

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”