Finding My TRUE VOICE

THE DEATH OF HER MOTHER, NAOMI, CAUSED THE SINGER TO RETHINK HER LIFE AND MUSIC

On Jan. 11, what would have been Naomi Judd's 77th birthday, her daughters held a party. "A bunch of our friends came and talked about her and told stories," recalls Wynonna Judd. "They had cake, and people cried, and it was an amazing celebration.... And then I went on stage and I sang, and that's what I do."

Wynonna has just wrapped up the last leg of The Judds: The Final Tour, an experience she calls both healing and liberating. A fitting coda to one of the most successful acts in country music history, it allowed Wynonna to connect with her fans and has given her permission to move on. "It's made me even more determined to be myself," says Wynonna. "It's given me a louder voice."

Success as half of the musical mother-daughter duo often felt like a double-edged sword to Wynonna, 58. In truth, a family band was always more Naomi's dream than her daughter's. As a teenager, Wynonna loved Joni Mitchell and aspired to sing like Linda Ronstadt or Bonnie Raitt. "[Naomi] had dreams and plans, and I had dreams and plans. They were very different," says Wynonna. "But I was so codependent, and I wanted to sing."