Joe Don Rooney, best known for his guitar work with Rascal Flatts, one of the most successful acts in country music.

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He has broken his long silence since pleading guilty to a 2021 DUI.  

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In social-media post, he affirmed his sobriety and also dispelled a rumor that he was transitioning. 

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“There have been so many rumors and opinions thrown around about me — but I’m finally healthy and ready for the world. And NO, I’m not transitioning to be a woman,” he wrote.  

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He also said “That thought has never entered my mind. Nothing against the trans community whatsoever but I needed to set the record straight.” 

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Rooney spoke extensively about his horrific vehicle accident and the adjustments he made to his personal life for the most of his post.

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He wrote “My life and career took a major detour at 4a in the early morning hours of Sep 9, 2021,.

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He wrote. “I was drunk, and I was so far gone with my life .

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I was completely out of control and finished with trying to fight the fears, depression, and anxieties that had spun me out in a way I’ve never experienced before.”  He also wrote.

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Rooney said that the factors that triggered him to drink included “the pressures of my career and the many mistakes I made in regards to my home life, coupled with a lot of pain and trauma from my childhood and early on in my adult life. 

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