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For Darius Rucker, divorce has been a learning experience.
The Hootie & the Blowfish frontman, 57, opened up about his split from estranged wife Beth Leonard — which he announced on social media in July 2020 — in a new episode of Apple Music’s Today's Country Radio with Kelleigh Bannen.
When asked what he has learned about himself through his divorce from Leonard, 56, after 20 years of marriage, Rucker said, “A lot.”
He quickly elaborated, telling host Bannen, “I learned how there’s help out there for people.”
"You know, being raised the way I was and where I was, that’s not always … and in the Black community especially, that’s frowned upon a lot, too,” continued Rucker, who was born and raised in South Carolina. “But I learned that there’s a lot of people out there that’ll talk to you, that’ll help you a lot.”
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Rucker, who wrote the emotional song “Never Been Over” about his split, also said that music has “always been my therapy.”
Of the track — which contains the lyrics, “We've been a lot of things / But we've never been over” — the singer-songwriter said, “You write a song like that, and you sing it over and over, and you cry sometimes when you sing it.”
“It’s just one of those songs, and I love it,” he said, adding that when he finished it, he “was like, ‘Man, that was therapy right there.’”
The “Only Wanna Be with You” singer also said that when it comes to the guilt surrounding the divorce, his “50-something self is a lot more forgiving than the mid-20-something self” — because he needs to be.
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“You have to, because life goes on,” Rucker, who shares daughter Daniela, 22, and son Jack, 18, with Leonard, told Bannen.
“Your kids are still your kids, and you have a life, and you try to make the best of it,” he said. “Like I always say, [Leonard is] a saint, she’s an amazing human being, and she’s a great mom. And we get through life.”
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Earlier this year, Rucker spoke of Leonard and their split similarly, telling PEOPLE that despite all of the hurt, they are “still a family” — and “she's a great human being.”
“That stuff hurts and you feel like a failure,” Rucker said of divorce. “But we’re still a family — a piece of paper is not going to change that. We’re still a family, and that’s all because Beth is awesome. She knows it’s the best for the kids, and she’s a great human being.”
At the time, the “Let Her Cry” singer also said that entering the dating world is not on his mind. Rather, Rucker is focused on being a good father to Daniela, Jack and Carolyn, his 28-year-old daughter from a previous relationship.
“I’m not thinking about that right now,” he told PEOPLE. “I’m just trying to be the best dad I can be for those grown kids.”
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