For two seasons, Jennifer Nettles helped farmers find love in “Farmer Wants a Wife.”
However, when the third season of the Fox dating reality show premiered in March, the singer and actor was nowhere to be found and replaced by Kimberly Williams-Paisley, Brad Paisley’s wife.
“I just couldn’t be in two places at one time,” Nettles tells TODAY.com about her departure from the show.
Nettles is currently co-starring alongside Kevin Bacon in Prime Video’s supernatural series “The Bondsman,” which conflicted with her duties on “Farmer Wants a Wife.”
“All of it is great and for a great reason,” she says of her packed schedule, before touching on leaving her “Farmer Wants a Wife” hosting duties behind, “I loved doing the show. I love romance and love. I love love.”
“For me to get to be a part of that and get to be a part of people’s lives and for them possibly coming together and finding love, I thought was really, really sweet,” she continues.
“Farmer Wants a Wife” follows four hard-working farmers who are looking for real and lasting love. Each farmer has a group of single women who leave their busy lives behind for the country experience.
Once there, they encounter what it is like to be on a working farm, tending to the land, caring for the animals and doing country-themed challenges — all while connecting with the farmer in hopes of true love. The show has over 30 international versions.
“And it works,” Nettles says of the show’s concept and happily ever afters. “They have so many couples all over the world.”
While the show holds a special place in her heart, she believes Williams-Paisley is the perfect person to take her spot.
“I love that Kimberly Paisley is doing it. I love her,” Nettles says. “I think she is such a sweet and perfect choice for this show.”
“And I just couldn’t be in two places at one time, so scheduling wise, I was like, ‘OK, we’ll all figure this out. And I’m sure everybody’s gonna be great — and they all lived happily ever after.’”
In January of 2024, during an appearance on Hoda & Jenna, Nettles praised the show as “one of authenticity and one of really searching for love and searching for your person and your partner.”
“The people who are on here are looking for love,” she said, as opposed to their “15 seconds of fame.”
“The people who are interested in this show are doing it for the right reasons. They’re doing it because they want love, because they want to try something new, because they are willing to open up their hearts to an adventure,” she said.
