To the world, he was ‘The Man in Black.’ To Johnny Cash’s children, the legendary country singer was simply their dad.
Johnny Cash is highly regarded as one of the best country singers of all time. With hits like “Ring Of Fire,” “Sunday Morning Coming Down,” and “Folsom Prison Blues,” he had a career that spanned to five decades.
Though we do know about his music career and even his highly publicized marriage to June Carter, not much is known about his children, so let’s introduce them to you!
Rosanne Cash
Rosanne, born on May 24, 1955, is the eldest daughter of Johnny Cash with his first wife, Vivian Liberto.
Rosanne grew up to be a musician, just like her father. In 1976, Johnny Cash recorded one of her compositions, “Love Has Lost Again,” on his album “One Piece at a Time.” It was Rosanne’s first professionally recorded work as a composer.
Rosanne admitted that she didn’t always think music would be her path. “I didn’t think I could sing,” Rosanne recalled. “And I grew up thinking becoming famous was about the worst thing you could do. You went on the road, you started doing drugs and got divorced and didn’t see your kids, and everything fell apart.”
But Rosanne was able to make a name for herself. In the 1980s, she had several chart-topping singles that crossed musical genres and landed on both the country and pop charts. Her most commercially successful song was her 1981 breakthrough hit “Seven Year Ache.” It topped the U.S. country singles charts and peaked through Top 30 on the U.S. pop singles charts.
Ever since then, she’s been winning awards left and right. In 1985, she took home her first Grammy for her track “I Don’t Know Why You Don’t Want Me.” In 2015, Rosanne won a whopping three Grammy awards. Overall, she has received 12 Grammy nominations.
Rosanne was also inducted in Nashville Songwriters’ Hall of Fame. And recently, it was announced that she had won the 2021 Edward MacDowell Medal for making significant contributions to American culture.
Kathleen “Kathy” Cash
A year after Rosanne was born, Johnny Cash and Vivian welcomed second daughter, Kathy Cash, on April 16, 1956, in Memphis, Tennessee.
She made a buzz in 2005 when she complained about how her mother was portrayed in the movie “Walk the Line,” starred by Joaquin Phoenix as her dad and Reese Witherspoon as her stepmother, June Carter Cash.
She said the film unfairly showed her mother as a shrew. “My mom was basically a nonentity in the entire film except for the mad little psycho who hated his career,” Kathy said. “That’s not true. She loved his career and was proud of him until he started taking drugs and stopped coming home.” Kathy was so upset that she walked out of a family-only screening — five times.
Kathy has been married to Jimmy Tittle since November 24, 1982, and the couple has three children together. In 2016, Kathy appeared in the drama-comedy film, “What’s the Matter with Gerald?” written by her son, Dustin Tittle, and son-in-law, Matt Riddlehoover.
Cindy Cash
On July 29, 1959, the world welcomed the third among Johnny Cash’s kids, Cindy Cash. Just like her father and sister, Rosanne, she’s into music too. She often performed with her father and stepmother, June Carter Cash.
She had her first duet with her father as part of the show when she was only 16. She also sang with the country legend in his last performance. Cindy also used to belong to the group ‘The Next Generation,’ along with other country superstars’ daughter: Conway Twitty’s daughter Cathy Twitty, Loretta Lynn’s daughter Patsy Lynn, and George Jones’ and Tammy Wynette’s daughter Georgette Jones.
“I did perform with Dad, and I did travel with a group called Next Generation,” Cindy said. “That was in the late ’80s and was great fun and a great learning experience for me.”
Cindy also appeared in some films: The Cradle Will Fall (1983), My Darling Vivian (2020), and Johnny Cash’s America (2008).
Tara Joan Cash
Tara Cash is the youngest daughter of the late Johnny Cash. Not much has been known about her, but in 2014, she released a book titled “Recollections by J.R. Cash: Childhood Memories of Johnny Cash.”
The book was actually a ten-year process. In 995, Tara gave her father a blank book entitled “Dad, Share Your Life With Me.” She asked him to fill it with his childhood memories. The country superstar spent a year completing the questions and returned it to his daughter on her birthday in 1996.
Personal photos chosen by Tara are also featured in the book. It’s definitely a unique look at the personal life and childhood of one of the most influential musicians in the history of country music. “This book tells the story of a young boy, his home life, his friends and family, his dedication to work, and where all of his hopes and dreams came alive in Dyess, Arkansas,” Tara said.
John Carter Cash
In 1967 Vivian divorced Johnny Cash, citing his substance abuse and alleged extramarital affairs. Cash moved on and married June Carter Cash a year after. They welcomed their son, John Carter Cash, into the world on March 3, 1970 – blending their families to include seven children in total.
John has been involved with music all his life. He is a singer-songwriter but spent most of his time working as a record producer and began his work with his mother’s album “Press On.” It won a Grammy in 1999.
He has also produced material for other country superstars like Loretta Lynn, Brooks & Dunn, George Jones, Kris Kristofferson, John Prine, and so much more. In total, he has been a producer of five Grammy Award-winning records.
In 2011, he wrote a book that shows a more personal side of his father, the “House of Cash: The Legacies of My Father Johnny Cash.” It took John five years to finish the book.
It’s hard to imagine what life would be like being born to a legendary country star, guess it must have been quite an experience for Johnny Cash’s children.