Country music legend Willie Nelson turned 90 this year, and he also celebrated 31 years of marriage to his wife, Annie D’Angelo. As he reached those two majorly impressive milestones in 2023, Nelson is now ready to share some inside information about his relationship and how the couple has stayed together as a tightly-knit husband and wife for so many long years.
Talking to People, Willie talked about his love for Annie and the role that the 66-year-old woman has played in his life over the last three decades. Willie said, “I call her my pet rattler. She’s my lover, my wife, nurse, doctor, bodyguard.” He then went on to explain her role as a doctor, explaining, “As they say, laughter’s the best medicine. I’ve always enjoyed a good joke.”
Willie also discussed a special moment in his life that took place during his celebratory concert on his 90th birthday earlier this year. Willie was joined on stage by his children, Lukas and Micah, as he relived his glory days as one of the most influential voices in the history of country music.
Reminiscing on that performance, he said, “We’ve got a couple of great kids. I am proud of them and all they’re doing on their own. It’s great to have your kids with you at any time, but if they’re on the stage singing with you and they’re good, that makes it even better.”
In typical Willie Nelson fashion, he had a very simple response when asked about raising his kids and the best way to mold his boys into good young men. He said, “It’s better to show them rather than tell them. If they see your work ethic every day, then they realize, ‘Hey, maybe he knows what he’s doing.'”
Willie Nelson will continue to live on long after he is gone in the streets of Nashville and in the world of country music. The outlaw can look at country music today and see his influence abound in stars from Morgan Wallen to Riley Green. While he says that he had a strong love-hate relationship with performing, Willie says that he was always quickly brought back to the thing he loved to do the most.
Summing up his mindset toward touring and life on the road, he said, “I quit after every tour, then two days later, I’m ready to go back. Billy Joe Shaver wrote in a song, ‘Moving is the closest thing to being free,’ and that’s the way I look at it. I enjoy riding up and down the highway.”
Willie Nelson was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in November 2023, an honor that was rightfully deserved after years of performing and inspiring other artists to adopt some of his style in their own music. Nelson was a pioneer and a role model to many young artists, and even to this day his influence can be heard in the newest sounds in country music, rock and roll, and beyond.
"*" indicates required fields