Kenny Rogers is an entertainer whom many have come to love for his country music. Nevertheless, he also sings other styles of music and is also an actor. Since he would be rightly associated with the country first, Rogers has become an authority in the genre with everlasting songs like The Gambler and his duet with Dolly Parton, Island in the stream. Here is everything you want to know about him.
Kenny Rogers Biography, Age
Kenny was born on August 21, 1938, in Houston, Texas, as Kenneth Ray Rogers. He also grew up here with his seven siblings.
For his education, the award-winning singer, who was to sing for almost 6 decades, went to the Wharton Elementary School.
Of course, like many great singers in their field, the passion for singing has been with him since childhood. However, he did not start with country music, which later brought him into the Hall of Fame, but he started as a teenager as a rock ‘n’ roll star.
Later he continued as a jazz singer with the band The Bobby Doyle Three and then with the New Christy Minstrels when the former band fell apart. The next band was Kenny Rogers and The First Edition, with whom he sang the very popular song Ruby, Don’t Take Your Love to Town. With the failure of the band, he decided to try his hand as a solo artist.
His solo career continued in the 1970s until he finally retired. His first album Love Lifted Me was released in 1976, followed by Kenny Rogers the following year and then Daytime Friends. In 1978 he created “Love Or Something Like It” and “The Gambler”, one of his greatest works. It was to be over 20 albums, which he produced in collaboration and on compilations.
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During his years as a singer he has won many awards, including 2 Grammy Awards out of many nominations, several Country Music Association Awards, and SESAC Nashville Music Awards, to name but a few.
Although he has become famous as a singer, Kenny Rogers is also an actor. The first movie he appeared in was Saga of Sonora (1973), followed by The Dream Makers (1975) and The Coward of the County (1981), to name a few. His most recent appearance was in 2009 as the narrator for How I Met Your Mother.
Spouse (Wife) And Children
A place where the gambler singer does not seem to make the right bets must be in his relationships. So far Kenny Rogers has been involved with more women as wives than many would do as dates.
Although he was associated with Dolly Parton, who many were convinced had something to do with Rogers, she is not on his long list of wives. The first woman to become his wife was Janice Gordon, whom he married in 1958. By 1960 they already had a child together and were also divorced.
The next woman who would marry the country singer to this day was Jean Massey in 1960, and by 1963 they were already divorced. Rogers moved on that same year and married Margo Anderson, with whom he remained until 1976. This union produced another child, Kennedy, who was born in 1964.
In 1977 Kenny had another wife, this time Marianne Gordon, who was divorced at the time. This union gave the singer another child, Christopher Cody Rogers, who was born in 1982.
Wanda Miller is the next woman who would be Kenny’s wife. So far, he seems to have managed to find the one who forms his island in the stream, as they have been together since 1997 when they got married. They have two children, Justin Charles and Jordan Edward, both born on July 6, 2004.
From all his marriages, Kenny Rogers is blessed with five children, the oldest of whom, Carole Rogers, was born in 1958, while the two youngest, Justin Charles and Jordan Edward, were born in 2004.
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Where Is He Now, Is He Dead?
It has almost become a trend among those who have made a career out of making up stories that celebrities are dead. Kenny Rogers has not escaped them, because in the past there has been more than one hoax claiming he died. The last time it was reported that he died was in 2018.
Just like many other false reports, the singer has proven to be very much alive.
However, he has not been in the best of health, and friends and family have already come to an end since he canceled his farewell tour in early 2018. There has been speculation about the health problems he has suffered from.
Since he retired in 2017 to spend more time with his wife and children, this was the start of “The Gambler’s Last Deal” tour, which he later had to cancel on the advice of doctors. For those who wonder where he is now, he is taking care of his health and spending time with his family.