Kellie Pickler breaks silence following death of husband Kyle Jacobs: Singer expresses gratitude to supporters for helping her during ‘the darkest time in my life’

Kellie Pickler has spoken out for the first time since the tragic death of her husband Kyle Jacobs, thanking supporters for all their love during ‘the darkest time of my life’.

Jacobs died by suicide on February 17, 2023 at the age of 49.

“One of the greatest lessons my husband taught me was in a moment of crisis: if you don’t know what to do, ‘don’t do anything, just be quiet,'” she said in a statement to People. “I chose to follow his advice.”

“Thank you to my family, friends and supporters for the countless letters, calls and messages you have sent me,” she said. “It really touched my soul and it helps me get through the darkest time of my life. As many of you have told me, you are all in my prayers.”

She also revealed that there will be an “intimate memorial” for Jacobs in the fall.

“I’m planning an intimate memorial for my husband later this fall, which is what Kyle would have wanted.”

She closed with “Love & Blessings, Kellie.”

Jacobs died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound at the Nashville home he shared with Pickler earlier this year.

The toxicology report found no drugs in Jacobs’ system, though it added that Jacobs had a history of “pseudo-seizures, gastrointestinal bleeding, elevated liver enzymes, and chronic alcohol use.”

The Metropolitan Nashville Police Department was called to Jacobs and Pickler’s home at 1:21 p.m. on February 17 when Pickler was unable to locate her husband when she awoke.

The American Idol alum and her assistant called 911 when they couldn’t open an upstairs bedroom.

“Officers and personnel from the Nashville Fire Department responded and found resident Kyle Jacobs, 49, dead of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound in an upstairs bedroom/office,” the Nashville Police Department said in a statement.

“His death is being investigated as an apparent suicide,” the statement concluded, with spokesman Don Aaron adding that everyone else in the home was safe.

Happier times: Pickler with her husband in 2015

‘That’s what Kyle would have wanted’: She also revealed that there will be an ‘intimate memorial’ for Jacobs in the fall; pictured 2019

Within a few weeks of the incident, it was announced that she would be leaving her role as an afternoon on-air personality on SiriusXM’s The Highway.

Just a day before Jacobs’ death, he celebrated that a record he was working on – Lee Brice’s album Hey World – went platinum.

Jacobs was a producer on the record, in addition to playing acoustic guitar and providing backing vocals.

In his latest Instagram post, he wrote, “Platinum?! SWEET!!! An amazing team of incredibly talented peeps put this one together… Honored to be a creative part of it… Thank you Jesus!!!”

Pickler rose to fame as a contestant on the fifth season of American Idol in 2006, finishing in sixth place

Pickler rose to prominence as a contestant on the fifth season of American Idol in 2006, finishing in sixth place.

That same year, she signed with 19 Recordings and BNA Records as a recording artist, with her hits like Don’t You Know You’re Beautiful and Best Days of Your Life co-written with Taylor Swift.

She started dating Jacobs in 2008, and after two and a half years of dating, Jacobs popped the question in June 2010.

They tied the knot on January 1, 2011 in an intimate ceremony on a private island in the Caribbean.

Pickler said of her marriage, “Private Island. Caribbean. Cigar in one hand, rum in the other. Someone just called me “Mrs. Jacobs.’….sounds nice.’