{"id":1303160,"date":"2019-02-01T16:03:15","date_gmt":"2019-02-01T23:03:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.cmt.com\/news\/?p=1802561"},"modified":"2019-02-01T16:03:15","modified_gmt":"2019-02-01T23:03:15","slug":"music-city-star-rachyl-degman-on-keeping-reality-in-reality-tv","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/music-news\/music-city-star-rachyl-degman-on-keeping-reality-in-reality-tv\/","title":{"rendered":"Music City Star Rachyl Degman on Keeping Reality in Reality TV"},"content":{"rendered":"
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by Samantha Stephens<\/a><\/span> 30m ago<\/span><\/span> <\/p>\n

Editor\u2019s note: The following article contains spoilers from the season two finale of<\/em> Music City.<\/p>\n

Life in front of the cameras cannot be easy.<\/p>\n

But for Music City<\/em>\u2019s Rachyl Degman, it\u2019s more than fine, especially in this current season of life. It\u2019s an opportunity to show real vulnerability and truth, and a chance to put the reality back in reality television.<\/p>\n

<\/blockquote>\n

CMT.com spoke with Degman exclusively in anticipation of the show\u2019s second season finale Thursday night (Jan. 31), and she was as delightfully candid as you would expect, even more so given the troubled waters of her marriage to musician Kerry Degman displayed in full view for audiences this past month.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have always believed that if people would just be more freaking honest about everything and just be more vulnerable, that every part of this world would be better and would be healthier,\u201d Degman Rachyl told CMT.com. \u201cI mean, my friends and family will tell you, I\u2019m always the one that\u2019s like sharing too much and vulnerable. But I really believe that. And it\u2019s been so encouraging because I kind of took a risk hoping that it would work, basically. I hoped that if I share the ugly and the good stuff, that it will help other women and encourage other women.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cI get emotional even just talking about it because I\u2019m really emotional,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n

Throughout the season, the Degmans\u2019 storyline remained a source of tension, not only between the Degmans themselves, but also between Rachyl and her friends, particular the newly-engaged Jessica Mack, who had a different position than maybe the others on Rachyl\u2019s friendship with Jeremiah and vocalized it with the best of intentions. We saw the ebb and flow of the girls\u2019 friendship, and felt even closer to them, because who cannot relate?<\/p>\n

\u201cI get a message every day that\u2019s like, \u2019Thank you so much for sharing on Music City<\/em>,’\u201d Rachyl said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe compliment I always get is: \u2019You\u2019re the most real cast member, and I love seeing your story.\u2019 And then people will go into detail of \u2019My husband\u2019s in the military, he\u2019s always gone,\u2019 or \u2019My husband this or I went through a divorce.\u2019 And it makes it all worth it. I would do it 10 times over again just to feel like I\u2019m connecting with these women. It\u2019s really encouraging to me to think that there are women out there alone, watching the show at their house while their kids sleep, feeling like, \u2019Even this girl that\u2019s on TV is struggling with these same things.’\u201d<\/p>\n

The life of a touring artist\u2019s wife is not for the faint of heart. It\u2019s painted in such a glamorous light online and in the media, but both Rachyl and Kerry Degman\u2019s willingness to pull back the curtain re-wrote the narrative, bringing to light the hardships and the intense loneliness.<\/p>\n

\u201cI spent a lot of nights alone,\u201d Rachyl confessed. \u201cLike, a lot of nights I spend alone with my son. I have no support. I have no family in Nashville. So, I\u2019m literally just alone unless a girlfriend wants to stop by or something. But how many times can you ask your girlfriend to come to your house and drink a glass of wine?\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/blockquote>\n

As much as you want or need, as we saw this season when Alisa, Ali and even J-Mack rallied to support their friend. But it was still hard to watch the hurt and pain shatter the picture perfect portrayal that we all want to see of marriage. But that\u2019s the reality, and reality is sometimes harsher than we\u2019d like it to be.<\/p>\n

But fortunately, at the end of the season, we saw the glimmer of hope for reconciliation and for forgiveness between Rachyl and her husband. Yet another example of how honesty can truly be the ultimate healer.<\/p>\n

Honesty, and of course, self-awareness, growth and the realization for women that your value also lies within your unique identity and not solely<\/em> in your sacrifice as a wife or mother. For Degman, that was one of the biggest awakenings of all.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t know why, but women martyr themselves day after day,\u201d she said. \u201cI don\u2019t know if it\u2019s in our nature or our culture. But, they martyr themselves to their marriage. You\u2019re not doing anyone any favors. You don\u2019t need to sacrifice yourself to your marriage. That doesn\u2019t help anyone. That doesn\u2019t help the United States. That doesn\u2019t help your family. That doesn\u2019t help yourself. You need to either have a healthy marriage that you want to be in or get out.\u201d<\/p>\n

So given the finale we saw last night, is she in or is she out?<\/p>\n

She\u2019s taking charge, that\u2019s for sure, and she\u2019s excited about what\u2019s next.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat I\u2019m most excited for is the next step in my personal life,\u201d she said. \u201cI think I\u2019m just excited to make a life for Wolfgang [she and Kerry\u2019s son] as he grows up and for myself, and this might sound kind of bitchy, but whoever that includes and doesn\u2019t include, that\u2019s fine with me.<\/p>\n

\u201cAt this point in my life, I\u2019m like, \u2019You know what? You made your life what it is. You\u2019re not a victim, and you create the life that you want for yourself, and nobody else can make you do or say anything or change your life. You\u2019re the only person that can change your life.\u2019 So I\u2019m just really excited to just move forward with Wolfgang, hopefully with Kerry, and see where his music takes us and where the TV show takes us. And, hopefully, where our marriage can take us.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hope for their future as a family, but ultimately for everyone\u2019s happiness. For now, Degman, a gifted and successful painter, is focusing on her blossoming art career along with her heart, a return to her roots before Nashville.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I met Kerry, I had just published a children\u2019s book that I was all excited about and it was my first kind of personal project. And I was working for Tom Shoes, and I was just living up my dream out in L.A. as an artist, which was why the move to Nashville was so devastating for me because I was leaving my dream. All that to say, it was all worth it. Now, with Music City<\/em>, I just thank Jesus every day because people are just sending me requests and I just pray they keep on coming.\u201d<\/p>\n

<\/blockquote>\n
<\/blockquote>\n

Other gems from CMT.com\u2019s chat with Degman:<\/p>\n

CMT.com: Who experienced the most growth in season two?<\/strong>
Degman: It\u2019s hard for me to say who showed it because I am there in reality and then what\u2019s on screen \u2026 they try and get as much as they possibly can on screen, but they can\u2019t get it all. It\u2019s not a documentary. But J-Mack, for sure.\u201d<\/p>\n

On the timeliness of her friendship with Alexandra:<\/strong>
\u201cPretty much as soon as we started filming and spending more time together as a group, Ali and I just totally hit it off. Sometimes you just need a girl to come alongside you, like ride or die, whatever. Whatever you choose to do, I support you.\u201d<\/p>\n

On what Jackson and Ali are really like:<\/strong>
\u201cJackson is incredible. He and Ali are like family to me. And they both just have really warm, really, really warm, welcoming hearts. They\u2019re both really open-minded even though they come from where they come from. They\u2019re super open-minded. I mean, I know their moms are the same way. Their moms have been through it, divorces, different things. So they are a Christian family, but they\u2019re really loving and open. And that\u2019s just so, so exciting to me.\u201d<\/p>\n

On the reality of the show:<\/strong>
\u201cJust having seen the first season, I felt really confident with the way that they portrayed me, just the way that I looked on television. I was like, \u2019Oh, yeah, that\u2019s accurate. That\u2019s who I am. That\u2019s the good and the bad, and it felt really well-rounded and pretty accurate, and I attribute that to everyone, but especially Adam [DeVillo]. I trust him so much now.\u201d<\/p>\n

Just how close were they before the cameras?<\/strong>
\u201cI knew J-Mack the best just because we run in the same circle and we went to church together. So I know her the best. We have a lot of friends in common. She and Kerry are the more established musicians, and they had bumped into each other through different writing sessions and things like that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Is Jackson okay?<\/strong>
\u201cJackson is 27. He\u2019s got a lot of stuff he needs to work through. He\u2019s going to be okay. We\u2019ll take care of him.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2026did she really want to hire that stripper for J-Mack?<\/strong>
\u201cI did not want to do that. I did not understand. I did not think it was a big deal. I didn\u2019t want to do it. But it\u2019s like, at the end of the day, I do care about J Mack, and it ruined her night and she hated it. I can apologize for that, you know?\u201d<\/p>\n

The season two finale of<\/em> Music City is now available On Demand and on CMT.com. Catch up on all things<\/em> Music City by visiting the show page on our site.<\/em><\/p>\n

\n
Samantha is a country radio insider with a deep love for the music and its stars. She can often be found on a red carpet or at a late-night guitar pull.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

via:: CMT News<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

by Samantha Stephens 30m ago Editor\u2019s note: The following article contains spoilers from the season two finale of Music City. Life in front of the cameras cannot be easy. But for Music City\u2019s Rachyl Degman, it\u2019s more than fine, especially in this current season of life. It\u2019s an opportunity to show real vulnerability and truth, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[159],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-1303160","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-music-news"},"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-06-11 09:57:01","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"KSKE Ski Country","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1303160","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1303160"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1303160\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1303160"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1303160"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kske\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1303160"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}