Ty Herndon is telling his full truth in his new book What Mattered Most, a new memoir that opens doors on trauma that he had locked up years ago.
What makes Herndon’s memoir even more immersive is the fact that the preface was penned by none other than country music Hall of Famer, Vince Gill.
Ty Herndon Details the Moment he Asked Vince Gill to do the Preface for His Memoir
Herndon said that when he asked Gill to write the preface, as well as read it for his audiobook, he got a glowing endorsement in return.
“He called me and said ‘I don’t need to read this book. I’ve followed you. I know you. You’re a friend. I will proudly read this preface for you,'” Herndon recounts. “He goes, Beyond a shadow of a doubt you’re telling the absolute truth… and thank God you got there.'”
Herndon said “When I hear Vince read the preface it made me cry because he poured his heart and soul into it in the audiobook.”
What Happened to Ty Herndon?
Ty Herndon has been open about his long battle with crystal meth addiction, the sexual abuse he endured early in his career and a 2020 suicide attempt. He was arrested for indecent exposure and felony drug possession in 1995.
Herndon detailed to me on Taste of Country Nights the day he got arrested and how his life changed forever.
Read More: INTERVIEW: Ty Herndon Clears Up Rumors of Arrest, Addiction + Crush on Wynonna Judd
“I was high as a kite, and I had six months’ worth of drugs sitting in my pickup truck,” he said. “And, you know, I basically got entrapped in a park in Texas. You know, I pulled off because I was running out of gas and there’s — I was so naive, man.”
“I pulled over to just basically get high,” Herndon admits. “And went for a little walk on a trail. It looked nice to me. And it had a very stoic police [officer], as we now know, was an undercover cop. Basically, you know, do the old rub, and I rubbed right back. The cop said, you know, I exposed myself to this police officer and he said, ‘Man, I know who you are. This is not your day, cowboy.'”
The 10 Best Vince Gill Songs
Country Music Hall of Famer Vince Gill has enjoyed a long, slow, steady climb to the top.
Over the course of his five decades in music, he’s become one of country music’s most beloved singers and musicians. Whether performing in the realm of bluegrass, mainstream radio country or rock, Gill has quietly become one of the genre’s most luminous hitmakers.
Gallery Credit: Carena Liptak
Enjoy 22 Pictures of Vince Gill Young
Vince Gill started his solo career in Nashville in the early 1980s. Since then, he has recorded more than 20 studio albums, charted more than 40 singles on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart and sold more than 26 million albums. When it comes to winning awards, Gill is no slouch, either — he has won 22 Grammys and 18 CMAs lifetime. In 2007, Gill was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame. Let’s take a look back at 22 pictures of Vince Gill young.
Gallery Credit: Evan Paul

