Country Stars Who Live Surprisingly Normal Lives

What country stars live surprisingly normal lives? The music industry is filled with mega-superstars who live luxurious lives, and country music stars are no exception. Just take a look at the most expensive country stars' homes if you don't believe us. 

But for every extravagant country star who lives an insanely lavish life, there's one who lives a surprisingly normal life. Even though these musicians have found fame and fortune in their careers, sometimes spanning multiple decades, they chose to hold onto bits of normalcy from their life before fame. 

From country stars keeping things normal for the sake of their kids to those who just really just embody the country life, you may be surprised at just how normal some of these celebs really are, deep down. After all, Miley Cyrus — daughter of country star Billy Ray Cyrus and goddaughter of country legend Dolly Parton – taught us that a Hollywood party is "definitely not a Nashville party." Here are the country stars who maintain some normalcy in their lives, whether they live in Nashville or not.

Country superstar and husband of powerhouse actress Nicole Kidman, Keith Urban has seen plenty of success and plenty of money. But like all of us, Urban sometimes leaves the house without everything he needs. We've all been there, standing in line to buy snacks, only to realize we're a little short. If you're lucky, maybe you'll get the help Urban did, when a substitute teacher from New Jersey gave him money when he was a few dollars short for his gas station snacks, not realizing who he was. 

According to the Associated Press (via the Tennessean), a woman named Ruth Reed learned who Urban was after he thanked her and told her his name was Keith. "It was then I realized what an idiot I was," she confessed. 

While relying on the help of strangers doesn't seem like something a country star would need, Kidman told Hello! (via Closer Weekly) that they "actually have a very normal life," even though people don't believe them. "We say this over and over again and people always go, 'Yeah, right,' but we do," Kidman added.

Even if you aren't a country music fan, you likely know of country star Blake Shelton, who was named People's "Sexiest Man Alive" in 2017. Even though he's wildly successful, a household name, and engaged to gorgeous and talented singer-songwriter Gwen Stefani, Shelton told Gayle King that if he weren't a musician, he'd probably still be roofing houses like he was before he found fame. But even though he no longer does roofing, Shelton has continued to stay grounded, and leads a pretty normal life with Stefani.

When King asked Shelton and Stefani what they envisioned for life in the next decade, Stefani said, "I have a lot of kids so I see myself...at a bunch of football games." Shelton was quick to agree, saying, "Yeah, I really — in the next 10 years I see myself in this exact same scenario." What's more normal and relatable than spending the next decade at youth football games? The "Sexiest Man Alive" is just like all of us.

You might think that being a famous country star, and someone who is pretty close with former president Barack Obama (via The Guardian), would make you an idol in the eyes of your kids. But it turns out that even Brad Paisley struggles to impress his children, just like the rest of us. The country star, who told The Guardian that his "life would be very puzzling to most people if they had to follow me around for a day or two," is more like the rest of us than we'd realized. 

Not only did Paisley reveal that he is "a huge, huge fan of almost everything British" (same, Brad), he told Page Six that he tries to keep his kids' lives normal — including not letting them go to that year's CMA Fest. Even though his kids have seen him play other shows, they're not easily impressed, but what kids are? "They've seen [crowds] at concerts, but they still think I'm a dork," he continued. "It's a weird combo. They think I'm a dork, but they think I'm cool." #relatable

Country star Luke Combs has skyrocketed to fame since he signed with Sony Music Nashville in 2016. He's a multi-platinum artist and an ACM, CMA, CMT and Billboard Music Award-winner. But despite the fame and accolades, Combs is a normal guy and hopes to stay that way. "In 5 years, [I want people to be able to] say, 'hey, I met Luke Combs five years ago and I met him right now and he's still the same guy,'" he told The Shotgun Seat. 

Combs definitely strives to stick to his roots. While back in his hometown to perform in 2016, Combs said in an interview with the Blue Ridge Now, "I don't want to be viewed as someone who [is] better than anyone else or as a snobby musician... I used to be the guy who stood for hours to see somebody perform." 

While riding out the pandemic at his home in Nashville, Combs told Rolling Stone that he's "just living the redneck dream out here right now," adding, "A simple existence is something I enjoy — and just finding joy in the quiet."

Country music stars seem to have it all, which can make us think they don't have the same kinds of problems as the rest of us, but they do. Country star Brett Eldredge, who has five No. 1 hits and millions of Instagram followers is still a normal guy who deals with anxiety, and has for nearly his entire life. "As a kid, I would kind of have like a panic attack ... but I didn't even know what that was," Eldredge said during an interview for the ABC News podcast Ten Percent Happier. 

The singer, songwriter, and record producer also revealed that those panic attacks continued as he became a country star. In fact, once at a show, his panic was so severe that he almost passed out before walking on stage. 

Like many of the 40 million adults in the U.S. who struggle with anxiety, Eldredge has found relief with therapy, exercise, and meditation. Even though he's a superstar, Eldredge helps remind us all that those struggles are normal and there is a path forward.

Country star Thomas Rhett has music running through his veins. Not only is he an award-winning singer and songwriter, his father is country star Rhett Akins. Additionally, according to The Times-Tribune, Rhett grew up around superstars like Tim McGraw, Joe Diffie, and Brooks & Dunn. 

Despite having a famous father, Rhett told Good Morning America that his dad "made life feel very normal even though his life was not." Rhett is doing the same with his daughters, too. "No matter what we get to do, whether traveling around the world and playing shows and then watching me sing, I do want them to stay as grounded and feel like they live as much of a normal life as they possibly can." 

Part of the trade-off for Rhett is that this also means he deals with all the normal dad things, like bribing your kids to eat their dinner with the promise of dessert, being covered in spit up, and sitting through holiday movies like The Santa Claus over and over each year.

Kane Brown doesn't look like most country stars you're used to. However, the biracial, heavily-tattooed star became the first performer ever to top all of Billboard's main country charts at the same time, so he doesn't care that some people think he isn't "country enough." Brown told the Free Times, "I only care what my fans think because they're the ones listening to me. If I start caring what critics think, then that's when I start changing who I am." 

For Brown it's important to stay true to who he is: a normal guy who was raised by his mother, and who started his musical career by posting covers of country songs on social media. 

While his success means being on the road a lot, Brown eats the same way we all do on road trips. He once even stopped at Subway, surprising the employees who were working there — especially assistant manager Angela Graves who said, "You look just like Kane Brown" before realizing it really was him. Yes, even country stars stop for gas station Subway when they're hungry.