Who are Willie Nelson's children? Many of them have chosen to follow in their father's footsteps
SPICEWOOD, TEXAS: Willie Nelson, whose long career is defined by hits including ‘On the Road Again’ and ‘Always On My Mind’, is a prolific musician whose contributions to country music will be spoken about for centuries. However, it seems that he is not the only musician in the family. Nelson has eight children in his long life and many of them have gone on to become talented musicians.
Nelson married four times, with his current wife being Annie D’Angelo, whom he married in 1991. His previous marriages were with Connie Koepke, Shirley Collie and Martha Matthews. With his first wife Matthews, he had three of his oldest children, Lana, Susie and Willie Jr. He divorced Matthews after she allegedly assaulted him, according to Yahoo! News. He had two daughters, Paula and Amy, with third wife Koepke. He had two sons with D'Angelo, Lukas and Jacob. Here’s a look at his children and some of their trysts with music.
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Lana Nelson
Lana was born in 1953 when he was married to Matthews and is Willie’s eldest child. She is an actress with many credits to her name. She is most remembered for her role in the 1986 film ‘Red Headed Stranger’. She has also appeared in the documentaries ‘Lovey: King of the Roadies' and 'The King of Luck.’ Lana is a country singer like her legendary father and also dabbled in directing with her documentary-style video for the Woody Guthrie song ‘Deportee'.
Susie Nelson
According to Yahoo! News, Susie is Nelson's second child with Matthews and is a renowned author. Her book ‘Heart Worn Memories: A Daughter’s Personal Biography of Willie Nelson’ was published in 1987 and was an account her life as the daughter of a country star. The book was a runaway hit. She also worked with Nelson as the co-host of ‘Susie’s Gospel Hour’ in 2012.
Billy Nelson
Billy is Nelson and first wife Matthews' third child. He was born in 1958 and had tragically died by suicide when he was 33. He had recorded a song with his father called ‘My Body’s Just a Suitcase for My Soul’, which was released as part of a gospel album in 1994.
Paula Nelson
Paula is Nelson and Koepke's first child. She was born while he was married to his second wife Collie, resulting in the divorce and the subsequent marriage to Koepke. She’s a prolific singer who has released five studio albums and was also part of the Paula Nelson Band. She also recorded a duet with her father called ‘Have You Ever Seen the Rain.’
Amy Lee Nelson
Amy is Nelson and Koepke's second child and a well-known singer in the folk music circuit. She’s part of the Folk Uke group with Arlo Guthrie's daughter Cathy, and together they have released three albums.
Lukas Nelson
Lukas is Nelson and D'Angelo's eldest son. He too chose a career in music. He’s part of the band Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real and they’ve released eight albums so far. Interestingly, this band was the backing band for Bradley Cooper’s character in the movie, ‘A Star is Born.’ Lukas wrote several songs in the movie was also Cooper’s vocal coach.
Micah Nelson
Micah is Nelson's youngest son and the second child he had with D'Angelo. He is also a well-known musician and is part of the rock band Particle Kid. The band has toured with Nelson on many occasions and are fast on their way towards making their own mark in music.
Renee Nelson
Renee is the lost child of Nelson and his friend Mary Haney, who came into his life many years into adulthood. He only found out about her in 2012. While her age has never been revealed, she reportedly has a daughter and a granddaughter as well. Nelson wrote about Renee in his 2013 autobiography 'Roll Me Up and Smoke Me When I Die: Musings From the Road'.