Granger Smith’s Wife Amber Shares How Their Family Experienced Loss and Grief ‘Differently’ amid Son River’s Death
Granger Smith’s Wife Amber Shares How Their Family Experienced Loss and Grief ‘Differently’ amid Son River’s Death
Madison E. GoldbergFri, July 10, 2026 at 4:46 AM UTC
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Amber & Granger SmithCredit: John Shearer/WireImage -
Granger Smith and his wife Amber shared how their faith helped them cope after losing their 3-year-old son River in 2019
Amber turned to Christianity a year before River’s death, finding strength in scripture during her grieving process
The couple discussed navigating grief differently while supporting their two other children through the loss
Granger Smith and his wife Amber are opening up about their kids’ changing relationship with grief following the death of their son River.
Granger, 46, and Amber, 44, appeared on Couple Things with Shawn Johnson and Andrew East on Thursday, July 9. In the episode, Amber discussed her own relationship with faith and how it helped her cope with grief. Granger transitioned from a career in country music to evangelical ministry following River’s death in 2019.
Amber recalled having a “really good marriage” amid Granger’s busy touring schedule as a musician and balancing parenting three young kids.
“We were happy,” she said. “We had three healthy kids.”
After not growing up in a religious household, Amber said she sought Christianity in the year before River’s death. She began attending Bible study groups and “going to church for the first time in my life and reading devotionals.”
She found herself leaning on her faith to cope with the loss of her son.
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“And as you can imagine, as a mom and a dad, I mean, it flipped our world upside down,” Amber shared. “And we didn’t know if our family would survive, if our marriage would survive, if we would ever find joy again.”
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Amber & Granger Smith on the Shawn & Andrew PodcastCredit: Shawn & Andrew Podcasts/Youtube
Amid the pain of losing a child, Amber said that she and Granger “just navigated that grief and pain together, very differently” — and so did their kids.
“Our children grieved very differently,” Amber continued. “But I think because I had just started to have a little small foundation in going to church and reading devotionals and things, I had little bits and pieces of scripture in my heart.”
She explained that when she found herself crying and frozen in grief, her connection to God helped motivate her.
“So when I was on that bathroom floor crying and grieving so hard, I knew that I didn’t want to stay there,” Amber added. “I had a husband, and I had two other children who needed me.”
In June 2019, Granger and Amber shared the “unthinkable” news of River’s accidental drowning on Twitter and Instagram, revealing that “despite doctor’s best efforts, he was unable to be revived” following a “tragic accident.”
River was laid to rest on June 11, 2019, PEOPLE previously reported.
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Source: “AOL Entertainment”
