Grammy-winning folk duo the Civil Wars is breaking up. For good, they say.
In a joint statement posted on their website, partners Joy Williams and John Paul White said the decision ends a “tumultuous period” for the group, which won the Grammy Awards for best country group and best folk album in 2012.
Williams said she was “saddened and disappointed” by the break-up and called her partner a “tremendous musician.”
An appearance on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno helped launch them into fame three years ago, and their songs have been featured on Grey’s Anatomy and The Hunger Games.
But trouble soon followed. Williams and White cancelled all of their live shows while in the midst of a European tour in 2012 due to “internal discord” and “irreconcilable differences of ambition”.
Even as they earned their first No. 1 album in 2013, the two were not on speaking terms.
Premature mention of their “break-up” even became fodder for a “Jeopardy” question.
Thanking fans and supporters, John Paul White said, “Whatever shape or form the next chapter takes, thanks for being a large part of this one.”
