Martina McBride Shares the Secret To Her 30+ Year Marriage
Long before Martina McBride was a CMA and ACM Award winner, she was Martina Schiff, an aspiring singer from a…
Martina McBride and John McBride; Photo by Jason Kempin/Getty Images
Long before Martina McBride was a CMA and ACM Award winner, she was Martina Schiff, an aspiring singer from a small town in Kansas. Growing up, Martina sang in her family’s band, the Schiffters. They traveled around playing weddings, supper clubs and dances until Martina graduated high school.
After realizing college wasn’t for her, Martina dropped out and joined a band called the Penetrators and paid her bills with a paycheck from the local Dairy Queen.
Hoping to find her big break, Martina traveled with the Penetrators in a beat-up van and sang Pat Benatar covers for anyone who would listen. The singer later told People the band “made no money” and eventually broke up.
She soon sought out musicians and formed a new band. They rented a warehouse rehearsal space from a sound engineer named John McBride, but as luck would have it, no one in the band wanted to rehearse. Martina was heartbroken and turned to McBride, who was living in the warehouse at the time, for support.
“Here I was, crying on his shoulder about my band not coming together, and I thought, ‘I’m in love with this guy,” she recalled to People. “This is crazy. He lives in a warehouse.’”
After Martina got past her initial hesitations and they eventually fell in love and were married on May 15, 1988.
Hoping to further their music careers, John and Martina relocated to Nashville about two years later. Things started to fall into place when John got a job as a sound engineer on the Garth Brooks tour. Martina picked up a gig selling merchandise on the tour and the pair traveled around the country together.
In 1991, Martina signed with RCA Records after John gave one of her demos to a record label executive. Her debut album was released the following year and she was on her way to becoming a country music superstar.
The McBrides have managed to maintain a healthy relationship even though they’ve been in the spotlight for nearly 30 years. How do they do it?
“When people ask me the secret to staying married, the most obvious answer is that I chose well. Or got lucky, depending on how you look at it,” Martina McBride once wrote in an article for NBC’s TODAY Show. “I married a man who is a great partner. He is thoughtful, kind, considerate, romantic, handsome and really funny. We love each other’s company, our personalities complement each other, and we respect each other. He thinks I’m smart and funny, and I think the same about him. We are a great team.”
Martina and John have three daughters; Delaney (born 1994), Emma (born 1998) and Ava (born 2005).
Lauren Jo Black is a longtime country music journalist, editor, host, and media personality whose work has helped shape the conversation around country music for nearly two decades. As the current Editor-in-Chief of Country Now, she has become one of the genre’s most respected voices, interviewing hundreds of country music’s biggest stars, including Dolly Parton, Garth Brooks, Reba McEntire, Shania Twain, Randy Travis, Luke Bryan, Carrie Underwood, Blake Shelton, Luke Combs, and countless others. Over the course of her career, Black’s written work and interviews have reached billions of country music fans worldwide. A 2009 graduate of the University of Central Florida, Black began her career by founding Country Music Is Love, one of country music’s earliest independent digital publications, which she later sold to a major record label in 2015 before it was rebranded as Sounds Like Nashville. She then served as the publication’s Editor-in-Chief for more than two years. Her work has also appeared in Forbes, and she previously served as the Country Music Expert for Answers.com. Widely recognized for her expertise, Black has appeared as a featured guest on The Bobby Bones Show, BobbyCast, and Scripps News Morning Rush, providing insight on country music’s biggest moments. She has also hosted Country Now Live, a concert series featuring performances from artists including Lady A, Dierks Bentley, Riley Green, Jordan Davis, Dustin Lynch, Gabby Barrett, Brett Young, Jon Pardi, Kip Moore, Chris Young, and more. The series has welcomed thousands of fans in person while reaching millions more online. In addition, she hosted Connect With Country Now, a weekly interview series featuring conversations with rising country stars. Throughout her career, Black has earned a reputation for discovering and championing artists long before they become household names. She has covered Luke Bryan since the early days of his career, beginning when he was writing songs for other artists, including Billy Currington’s No. 1 hit “Good Directions,” before stepping into the spotlight with his debut single, “All My Friends Say” and eventually becoming one of biggest names in music. She also gave Megan Moroney her first opportunity to walk a major red carpet as Country Now’s official guest correspondent at the 2022 CMA Awards. An interview she conducted in 2018 for Forbes.com with Luke Combs that inspired his multi-week No. 1 hit, “Doin’ This.” She has also hosted stages at CMA Fest, moderated an industry panel at Country Radio Seminar, and helped lead important conversations about the evolving landscape of country music media. Beyond journalism, Black has also used her platform to support charitable causes and highlight organizations making an impact. Through Country Now Live, she has helped raise awareness and support for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, while also advocating for animal rescue through Country Now’s Pupdate series, spotlighting organizations including MuttNation Foundation, Wags & Walks, and Proverbs 12:10 Animal Rescue. Black has been recognized as one of Country Aircheck’s Women of Influence and received the 2012 Rising Star Award from the University of Central Florida. She is a longtime member of both the Country Music Association (CMA) and the Academy of Country Music (ACM). After nearly 20 years covering country music, Lauren Jo Black has spent her career telling the stories behind the artists, songs, and moments that have shaped the genre. Her first-ever book, Country Music Forever: An A-to-Z Celebration of Icons, Songs and Stories, brings that same passion and firsthand knowledge to the page, celebrating not only the legendary artists and timeless songs that have become the soundtrack to generations of fans, but also the places, traditions, and cultural moments that have made country music one of the most beloved genres around the world.
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