COUNTRY singer Granger Smith and his wife Amber Bartlett have spoken candidly about their grief after their toddler son River’s tragic death.
River was just three when he died in a devastating drowning incident at the family home in 2019.
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Almost four years after his son passed away, Granger announced that he is giving up country music.
The Backroad Song hitmaker told fans on Tuesday that he will be joining a ministry – meaning his upcoming Like a River tour will be his farewell.
As Granger, 43, focuses his attention on his faith, we take a look over the harrowing incident that changed his and his wife’s life.
River fell into the pool at Granger and Amber’s home on June 4, 2019.
Granger had been playing at the time with River and his two other kids, London and Lincoln, who are now 11 and nine.
The singer jumped in the pool to save his son and they rushed the toddler to hospital.
While doctors managed to restore River’s heartbeat, he was brain-dead from the lack of oxygen in the pool.
Granger and Amber, 41, reflected on the heartwrenching tragedy in an interview on CBS This Morning in 2021.
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He recalled: “Me and the three kids were outside. I noticed it was a little bit of quiet and I thought, ‘Where’s Riv?’
“And I turned around and our pool was probably 20 paces behind me with a gated fence. And he was in the pool.”
Fighting back tears, he went on: “Because of the short time that had gone by, I thought I was gonna grab him and flip him over and he was gonna cough, and I was gonna say, ‘Buddy! What, how did you get in here?’
“But that’s not what happened. He was lifeless.”
Granger and Amber took turns giving River CPR until the ambulance arrived. The toddler tragically died in hospital.
GRANGER’S GUILT
The country star admitted he feels crippled with “guilt” when he looks back on the incident.
“I don’t think I will ever not have that feeling of responsibility and guilt. I feel like somebody has to be responsible, and it was me.
“As a parent, I look back on that day and there’s a million things I could have done just a little bit different. And it would have been a different outcome.”
Amber said she also struggles with guilt but has never placed the blame on her husband.
“I say to [Granger], ‘I feel the same guilt.’ I feel the same responsibility, ’cause River’s my son. I never once have felt blame for him,” the actress said.
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“And I hate that he carries that every day.”
Granger announced the “unthinkable” news of River’s death in 2019 on Instagram.
Alongside a photo of him smiling as he held River, he wrote: “I have to deliver unthinkable news.
“We’ve lost our youngest son, River Kelly Smith. Following a tragic accident, and despite doctor’s best efforts, he was unable to be revived.
“Amber and I made the decision to say our last goodbyes and donate his organs so that other children will be given a second chance at life.
He added: “Our family is devastated and heartbroken, but we take solace in knowing he is with his Heavenly Father.”
Remembering his late son, Granger continued: “Riv was special. Everyone that met him knew that immediately.
“The joy he brought to our lives cannot be expressed and his light will be forever in our hearts.
“If there are words to say more, I cannot find them in this moment. Love the ones close to you. There has never been a more difficult moment for us than this.”
DEVASTATING TRIBUTE
A year after River’s death, Amber shared a heartbreaking tribute to the three-year-old and said she’ll “never forget him.”
In March 2021, Granger announced that he and Amber were expecting a baby boy.
Their son, Maverick, was born in August 2021 and is now 20 months old.
Granger has paid tribute to his late son by naming his upcoming Like A River tour in his honor.
Discussing his decision to quit music, Granger said on Instagram: “I have felt a strong desire to pursue ministry. This doesn’t mean that I’m gonna start a church or a crusade or a revival.
“This means to me that me and my family are gonna serve our local church. We’re gonna pour into that church as members and have my pastors and elder pour into me and disciple me and teach me as I sit under their wise teaching.”
He explained that he felt it was a contradiction to pursue ministry and country music at the same time.
“In country music, when I get up on the stage and just need glorification and need praise, and if I don’t get it that means my career is not doing well and so I work harder for that,” he said.
“I can’t reconcile those two things, y’all. I can’t. I can’t go to seminary and pursue ministry and be poured in by my pastors and elders and then go out on weekends and try to be exalting myself.”
Granger is currently working towards his master’s degree from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.
During his announcement, Granger said he will still go on his 35-date tour but it’ll be his last.
He added that this tour will be all about his fans and they can expect to hear music throughout his 24 years of touring.
It is kicking off in Wisconsin on April 13 and is set to conclude on August 26 in Fort Worth, Texas.
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