Amy Grant and Vince Gill have been married since 2000, after being friends for years. Grant, a successful Christian artist, is opening up about what led to their friendship, which later in life turned into a beautiful romance.
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It was when Grant needed a high male voice to sing on "House of Love," the title track of her 1994 album. She already knew Gill, from appearing on his Christmas TV special. His voice was especially needed since she wasn't convinced "House of Love" was the right song for her to sing.
"I thought, 'I don't really think I'm that soulful. I'm not sure if that's really a great tool in my toolkit'" Grant recalls to American Songwriter. Her producer, Mike Blanton, fortunately disagreed, and convinced her to do the song with Gill.
"Whatever tools are in my toolkit, to me it's like if somebody comes into any kitchen and they say 'We're gonna make soup,' Grant says. "Most kitchens have the capability of creating soup. Every kitchen's going to have a different kind of soup. Basically, he walked into my kitchen and said, 'We are going to create this song magic. And we just worked with what I had available."
Amy Grant and Vince Gill's Love Story
"House of Love" was the first of many duets Grant recorded with Gill. The couple both had failed marriages -- Grant to Gary Chapman and Gill to Janis Oliver -- before finding true love together.
"When we first met, I think the first year we worked together, I remember telling Vince if I were a guy, we would have been best friends," Grant previously CNN's Larry King. "We would have been running buddies. But that was really -- that's truly all it was. And November would roll around and I'd go hey, we're doing that Christmas show again. And that happened for several years. I knew hey, I get to see him at Christmas because we're going to do the benefit."
Grant and Gill's marriage vows were tested in recent years. In 2020, Grant underwent heart surgery, followed by sustaining a serious brain injury two years later when she fell off her bike.
"This has made us all look at each other with a kind of appreciation," Grant tells People. "I think being together maybe was a little bit on autopilot, and it doesn't feel that way now."
