Wynonna Judd’s Daughter Grace Kelley Has ‘Forgiven’ Singer (Exclusive)

Wynonna Judd’s daughter Grace Kelley is ready to talk about her deeply troubled past — and her journey forward.

“This is the first time in my life that I’ve genuinely been at peace,” Kelley, 29, tells PEOPLE in an exclusive new interview. After a difficult 2024 that included three arrests and a stint in jail, Kelley says she is now healthy and sober, and has settled into a routine at home in Charlottesville, Va. “I wake up every day at the same time. I make breakfast. I send my boyfriend on his way to work. I go to work. I go to my Bible study and it’s just a peaceful, simple life, and I’m happy.”

Getting to a place of peace has been a challenging journey for Kelley, whose father is Judd’s first husband, Arch Kelley III (The couple divorced after two years in 1998). In recent weeks, Kelley has spoken publicly for the first time about her traumatic childhood, which allegedly included sexual abuse at the hands of both her former stepbrother and stepfather, and a complicated relationship with her Grammy-winning mother.

“She’s done some messed up stuff, man,” Kelley says of Judd, 61. “I just never had a voice to talk about any of this. I don’t want to stir the pot, but ultimately, the Bible says the truth will set you free. So I’m here to tell the truth and talk about it, because I want to share my story.”

Today, Judd has custody of Kelley’s 3-year-old daughter Kaliyah, with whom she was pregnant while she was in prison on a probation violation stemming from a 2016 drug possession charge. Judd has previously spoken about her bond with Kaliyah, and said in a May interview that the child helped her realize “there is life after death” following the suicide of her mother and former musical partner, country icon Naomi Judd, at age 76 in 2022.

Kelly alleges that she was sexually abused as a child by her stepfather and stepbrother.

In a July interview with Charlottesville’s The Daily Progress, Kelley alleged that D. R. Roach — to whom Judd was married from 2003 to 2007 — sexually abused her when she was 10 years old. Roach was arrested and charged with sexual battery against a minor in 2007, though his victim was never publicly identified. Judd filed for divorce shortly after, saying in a statement at the time she was “obviously devastated” by the situation.

Now, Kelley alleges that the first time she was abused as a child was actually by Roach’s son, starting when she was 6 years old and continuing “every night” for three years. She says it ended when her stepbrother “told on himself in counseling,” and Judd promptly sent him out of the house and to a wilderness program.

Still, Kelley alleges that when Roach began abusing her, she told Judd, and the singer put the family in counseling for “weeks,” forcing a young Kelley to sit face-to-face with her abuser.

“Ever since that happened, that’s when my mom started looking at me differently. She treated me different… I [remember saying], ‘Mom, please don’t make me go.’ And she would be ripping me out of the car,” says Kelley. “Being that young and watching her hug and kiss this man goodbye after every session… It’s like, wait a minute. Where does your loyalty lie? I’m your child. So that’s the ultimate betrayal for me.”

A rep for Judd did not respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.

“Ultimately, the facts are, when I told her about the abuse, she put us in counseling,” says Kelley. “After it came out in the media is when she filed for divorce. Her actions speak for herself.”

Kelley says her relationship with her mother, Wynonna Judd, worsened as the years went on.

As the rift between mother and daughter grew, so too did Kelley’s struggles. She alleges that Judd had her “snatched, blindfolded and dropped off” at various facilities over the years when she was a teenager.

“I can’t just keep saying all this crazy stuff about my mom. People are going to think I’m just making this s— up,” Kelley says. “But that was literally my childhood.”

Eventually, she claims, she got involved with selling drugs simply to pay her bills, which sent her on a downward spiral that would last years.

“I’m not blaming my mom for my mistakes as an adult, but when I was a child, yeah I am,” she says. “Because she did that. I think she wanted me to feel pain. It’s like, imagine me in a pool with weights tied around my neck. It’s like she’s throwing more on top of me, but saying, ‘Keep swimming. You’re strong. You got this.’”

While Judd — who is also mom to son Elijah, 30, with ex-husband Arch Kelley III — has not spoken extensively about Kelley’s struggles, she did call her daughter “the strongest Judd woman in our ‘herstory’” in a 2020 interview. In the May documentary The Judd Family: Truth Be Told, which aired in May, Judd said that she herself had been molested as a child at 12 years old.

Kelley says her life began to turn around in 2024 after she stole a church van.

In October 2024, Kelley was arrested for stealing a van belonging to a Charlottesville church run by Pastor Kent Hunt and his wife Meghan. She later took a plea deal for the arrest and spent six weeks in jail — but instead of being angry with her, the church from which she stole the van embraced her with open arms, welcoming her into their community and baptizing her.

“We talk every day and [Meghan’s] like, ‘Grace, you are not, and you never were evil. You’re the sweetest person we know,'” says Kelley. “When I came up here, I found people that believed in me and I found the goodness of God. That’s when everything changed for me.”

Although she says she is finally feeling settled in Virginia, her 3-year-old daughter Kaliyah remains a sadness for Kelley. Judd currently has custody of Kaliyah, and Kelley says it’s been “a couple of years” since she’s been able to see her daughter.

Kelley claims that Judd — who she says last reached out in July to ask about her work schedule — currently has a restraining order in place against her that covers both her and Kaliyah, leaving Kelley unable to speak with her daughter.

While Kelley is hopeful for a reunion, she is doubtful one will ever happen. Still, she maintains a Facebook account for her daughter that she’s been updating regularly to show Kaliyah just how hard she’s working, so that the young girl can grow up and realize, “My mom doesn’t not want me.”

“If you’re poor, you don’t stand a chance,” she says. “I work hard. I fight for my life every day. I go to the food bank every week. And my mom, she’s got so much money. She got my child and basically said, ‘Screw you.’”

Kelley says that she has forgiven her mother and is focused on her completed memoir.

Despite the extremely complex history, Kelley says she would “for sure” be open to mending her relationship with her mother, and if she could speak to her today, would relay the message of a Bible verse: “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.”

“All things are possible, and I pray that she genuinely has a change of heart. I’ve forgiven her,” she says. “I’ve healed. I’ve forgiven my mom. But of course there’s still a part of me inside that wants to tell my side of the story, because I’m being portrayed as something I’m not.”

Kelley is currently shopping her memoir, and says that writing the book is what got her through prison. It’s called Pronoia, and she says it’s named after the idea that the universe is conspiring in your favor. She asks that anyone who’d like to speak with her about her book or those with shared experiences reach out to her at pronoiarelations@gmail.com.

“I want to believe that the universe is for me. I have to believe that. I got to have hope,” she says. “Nothing’s going to change until you truly change your heart. And by the grace of God, I’m able to have a changed heart today.”