Dolly Parton Offers Encouragement To Reba & Kelly Clarkson Following The Death Of Brandon Blackstock: “[He’s] In A Better Place Than We Are”

Dolly Parton knows a thing or two about grief after losing her husband of nearly 60 years, Carl Dean, in March.

Last week, it was announced that Brandon Blackstock, Kelly Clarkson’s ex-husband and famous entertainment talent manager, has sadly passed away at 48. He was the father to her two young children River, 11, and Remington, 9, and he also had two adult children from a previous marriage, Savannah and Seth. He became a grandfather in 2022 when his eldest child Savannah gave birth to a son, Lake.

Blackstock was also the stepson of Reba McEntire, as Reba was married to Brandon’s father, Narvel Blackstock, for many years, from 1989 to 2015.

A rep for the family gave a statement to PEOPLE, confirming his passing and saying he had been battling cancer for “more than three years.” They also thanked the fans for their thoughts and prayers, and asked for privacy during this very difficult time:

“It is with great sadness that we share the news that Brandon Blackstock has passed away. Brandon bravely battled cancer for more than three years. He passed away peacefully and was surrounded by family. We thank you for your thoughts and prayers and ask everyone to respect the family’s privacy during this very difficult time.”

Brandon had been fighting a three-year battle with melanoma, and he and Clarkson went through a nasty divorce several years ago, as Clarkson filed for divorce from him back in 2020. They finally settled their divorce in 2022 after a longtime custody battle over their two children, though the battle made headlines for years and it seemed as though they were not on good terms.

Clarkson and Blackstock were married from 2013 until 2022, and they first met in 2006 at a rehearsal for the Academy of Country Music Awards, when Blackstock was working as Rascal Flatts’ tour manager. Six years later, they reconnected at the Super Bowl and began dating. Blackstock later became Blake Shelton’s manager, as well as Clarkson’s while they were together.

Many of Blackstock’s friends and family have shared tributes and memories of him, including Reba’s son and Brandon’s half brother Shelby. And even though Clarkson and Blackstock were no longer married, and had been through a horrible divorce, a source told Page Six that Clarkson has been looking after him while trying to work and keep her residency, as well as popular daytime TV show, alive. They explained that Blackstock was “the man she loved” and still the father to her children:

“It’s been exhausting and so sad… Kelly has been working so hard, as well as looking after Brandon. Despite their difficult divorce, he’s still the man she loved and still her kids’ father.”

It’s so tragic for his young children, and I know Kelly and the rest of his family, including Reba, are absolutely devastated.

And during an interview with Entertainment Tonight last night, Dolly talked about how much she loves Kelly and Reba:

“Oh yeah, I love her. No, I have not. We’ve been so involved in all this stuff here. But I will, I’ll catch up with her. I am, actually, I’m working with Reba today on some oof my publicity today that I’m doing.

I love Reba, and I love Kelly, I have a lot of friends in this business. I don’t get to really visit them, people say, who are your best friends Well, my best friends are my family, my sisters, so I don’t have time to get out and socialize.”

When asked if she had any advice for the family in terms of their grieving process, Dolly kept it simple and says she trues to focus on the best years she spent with Carl, and is at peace knowing he’s in a much “better place than we are”:

“Well I think you just have to be grateful for the years that you’ve had with someone, and you just try to remember the very best of all of that. Take their energy that they had given you and kinda recycle that and let that become a part of you. Just honor their memory, and just know they’re in a better place than we are these days.”

Amen to that, Dolly…

She has seemingly handled the loss of her husband very gracefully, at least in the public eye, and really hasn’t stopped working since his passing. I’m sure she’s sad inside, and has had plenty of long, hard cries behind closed doors, but she’s so full of faith and an inspiration to everyone around her, even when she’s still going through the hardest loss of her life herself.

While losing a husband of that many decades is obviously very different than losing an ex-husband, Dolly is always ready to lift up those around her and I think the basic principles of her advice can apply to anyone dealing with any sort of loss:

The post Dolly Parton Offers Encouragement To Reba & Kelly Clarkson Following The Death Of Brandon Blackstock: “[He’s] In A Better Place Than We Are” first appeared on Whiskey Riff.