Julie Chrisley Opens Up About Prison, Trump’s Pardon and Life After Lockup
Greta Wire
Julie Chrisley opens up about her life journey, from a small-town South Carolina upbringing and plans for pharmacy school to marriage, mothe
Key takeaways
- Julie Chrisley reflects on how her life was shaped by resilience, faith, and a strong sense of self despite public scrutiny.
Main topics
- Julie Chrisley's early life and ambitions
- Reality TV and its impact on privacy
Notable quotes
"I was diagnosed with breast cancer in March of 2012. My father-in-law was diagnosed with liver cancer. He passed away in July of 2012. We discovered, my husband's business partner, what he had been doing in August of 2012."
Conclusion
Julie Chrisley's story is one of profound resilience, self-discovery, and
Transcript preview
Speaker 2 (0:00) The Greta Wire podcast is presented by Paramount+. On Speaker 1 (0:05) September 18th, prepare for uncivil war. Mobland, the hit crime series from the underworld of Guy Ritchie, returns to Paramount+. The Harrigans are back and their empire is spiraling into chaos from the inside out. As power plays, fractured loyalties, and reckless decisions collide, Fixer Harry is left to clean up the fallout. Don't miss Mobland starring Tom Hardy, Piers Brosnan, and Helen Mirren. I Speaker 3 (0:30) think I know something you don't know. I know why Todd Chrisley married Julie Chrisley. Everybody knows the Chrisleys, but I think I know why Todd Chrisley married her. And you're about to find out because I just did a podcast with her. You're going to be able to watch it. And she is so extraordinary. She's Julie Chrisley. Speaker 3 (1:02) to meet you and I got to tell you I've met your husband and I know why you married him. Speaker 4 (1:11) Well thank you so much and it is a pleasure meeting you as well. It's a pleasure meeting Speaker 3 (1:15) you. I mean you guys are you know roaring successes and it's this extraordinary story. So I you know I just want to start at the beginning you know tell me like well before the success. Well, like when you're 15, what did you think you'd be doing the rest of your life? Did you think you'd be a TV Speaker 4 (1:32) star like this? Well, I definitely did not think this was going to happen. That's for sure. You know, I come from a very small town in South Carolina. My father was a Southern Baptist minister. So, you know, we lived a very simple life. You know, I think I always knew I wanted more. Speaker 4 (1:52) You know, Todd and I shared that dream, which I think was something that really brought us together. You know, we come from very similar backgrounds, but yet, you know, we knew we wanted to work hard and we wanted certain things and we wanted our children to have certain things. But no, I never dreamed that any of this would happen for sure. What do you think you'd be? Or what do you want to be? You know, I had plans. I was actually going to pharmacy school. Really? Yeah. Yeah. So that's what I was going to do. And I worked, you know, all through high school at, and I was a pharmacy tech and then that's what I was going to do. And, but you know what, God had other plans for me. And that was, I'm so grateful now. Speaker 3 (2:32) I wanted to be a photographer. Well, first I wanted to be a lawyer, which I became because I was always in trouble in school and I knew I'd need a lawyer at some point. I wouldn't be able to afford one, so I better be one. But then I wanted to be a photographer. But then the first day that I was out from my school newspaper in college shooting pictures, I forgot to bring the film all the way over and I was so ashamed I never went back. So that was my, that was the end, that was the end of that career. Right. Short lived. OK, Speaker 4 (2:56) I think you were destined for much greater. And it shows. I Speaker 3 (2:59) don't know about that. But, you know, people don't realize you make it look easy on TV, you and your whole family. But it is not easy what you've done at all. You know, Speaker 4 (3:09) I do think people don't realize that it is a job for sure. You know, I say all the time, people have asked me over the years, like, what was it like? I said, well, just imagine going to work every day with your husband, Speaker 2 (3:26) your Speaker 4 (3:27) mother-in-law, Speaker 2 (3:27) your Speaker 4 (3:28) adult children, your young children. And imagine doing that every single day because that's basically what our life was for 10 years. And looking back, you know, it was such a blessing because I was able. to be with them. You know, and I have these amazing, you know, movies, you know, from my children growing up that I would have never had. But it is a job. And I think people don't always see it that way. Oh, I realize Speaker 3 (3:57) it's a job. And it's also an invasion of privacy. I mean, we know we're in your life. Speaker 4 (4:03) Absolutely. You know, and but I also and I've told my children this, you know, we signed up for that. You know, like. But did you really, I mean, when you first signed up Speaker 3 (4:12) for it, I would assume be sort of like a lark not realizing what it was going to be. I mean, it grew, it Speaker 4 (4:17) ballooned. Absolutely. Like, I can honestly tell you, I had no idea what it was. You know, I had never had anything to do with television, nor had I really had any desire. You know, my husband and I both had very successful careers in Atlanta. And, you know, we were kind of just. you know, have had this great life. So we didn't go out here and, and seek out television, you know, it really did just come to us. And then we're like, okay, well, let's just go with it and see what happens. And then, you know, there we were 10 years into the show. Speaker 3 (4:52) All Speaker 4 (4:53) right. Let me ask about Todd. When you first saw him, did you like him? I was very intrigued by him. So you have to understand we've been married for 30 years. We celebrated our 30th wedding anniversary. And so we've been together almost 32 years. So I do feel like we grew up together and absolutely. You know what? He's more handsome today than he was then. Did you pick him up or did he pick you up? You know, I think it was a pretty mutual thing, honestly. Speaker 3 (5:22) If I'm being honest, it was pretty mutual. And, I mean, did you ever dream that he would want to be part of this journey of TV? Speaker 4 (5:32) You know, I didn't. I mean, I always knew that Todd had a larger than life personality. You know, he has this very electric personality. So I'm not surprised by it. You know, I guess I'm just grateful that he drug us all along with him. What did the camera catch about you? What do you think people would be surprised about you? You know, I think that. Speaker 4 (5:59) You know, and I'm not a comments person, so I can honestly tell you I'm not one to go out here and just like pilfer through and read all these comments over the years, because had I done that, I would have been crazier than what I what I was. But, you know, I think people thought of me a lot of this, you know, docile Southern wife who just did whatever, you know, and I very much have a mind. I very much have been able to, you know. carved my own path. And Todd's very much fostered that. So that's not something that he was ever like, okay, you're this Southern submissive wife. No, he actually likes the fact that, you know, I have a mind and I have things of interest that I want to pursue and that I've been able to pursue. Speaker 3 (6:45) Well, it hasn't always been Rose. I mean, like, you know, you had a health problem, which everybody, I mean, it's, it's just horrible. You know, you had breast cancer. which I'm sure stopped you dead in your tracks. You know, it's like, I Speaker 4 (6:57) imagine. Absolutely. So 2012 was. Such a crazy year for us. It seems like yesterday and then it seems like forever ago. I was diagnosed with breast cancer in March of 2012. My father-in-law was diagnosed with liver cancer. He passed away in July of 2012. We discovered, my husband's business partner, what he had been doing in August of 2012. So that was just like this crazy just... perfect storm moment, honestly, for our family. And then the show started filming right after that. So yeah, it was crazy. But I am so blessed because, you know, there are so many that have gone through so much worse with their breast cancer. You know, mine was caught really early. And, you know, I've had, I've been cancer free since 2012. So that's, that's a blessing. Knock on wood. Speaker 4 (7:53) But, you know, the thing is, is that Speaker 3 (7:54) when very public people like you have that, it sort of makes, I don't know what the word is, but it makes it easier for other people. Like other people don't feel like they're alone, you know, because, you know, you had this sort of golden life from the exterior as you watch TV. But on the other hand, you have a very human life, you know, with real human problems. Speaker 4 (8:12) Absolutely. And, you know, whether, you know, I guess one of the greatest compliments that I honestly feel like I am given is that. You are just like you appear on TV. And to me, that is a compliment because I am who I am. I mean, I did not have this persona on TV of being something other than what I really am in real life. Speaker 3 (8:34) Well, you know what I always get? I get two things. One is, oh, you're so short. That's the first thing I get. And then secondly, if I stop and talk to the person, like in the airport, the person says, you have a sense of humor. And it's because, you know, because I'm talking about the news and there's nothing funny about earthquakes or hurricanes or, you know, it was just nothing funny about it or death and destruction. So I'm not sitting there. It's not a big ho-ho on TV. So people are shocked that I could laugh about anything. Right. Speaker 4 (9:05) Well, I think, you know, I mean, my first time, I think seeing you was what, back in OJ days, right? What do you think? What do you think? Come on, tell me the truth. What? I said, I Speaker 3 (9:17) thought you were amazing then. Oh, you're sweet. You're very kind. Anyway, a lot of people didn't. Those comments you're talking about, the reading, a lot of people didn't like me. A lot of people still don't like me. I mean, it goes with the business. You know that. It goes with the business. Speaker 4 (9:30) It absolutely does. And you know what? My husband, he has always told my kids, and whether he believes it or not, I do listen. He says, someone else's opinion of you is none of your business. Don't worry about it. You know who you are. You know what you do. You know what you believe in. Stand on that. And that is something that I do. I continue to tell myself that daily. Speaker 3 (9:53) Yeah. And the truth is that people who might be snarky on social media to me or to you or to anybody, they would never come up to you and say that to you in public. You know, they're very brave with a keyboard. Very brave. Speaker 4 (10:04) Absolutely. Absolutely. And they really have no idea who we really are. Yeah, Speaker 3 (10:08) no, that's true. And they have no idea what our lives are like or your lives. But we know, but you and I have both been very lucky in a lot of ways. You know, we're both lucky. Speaker 4 (10:15) Absolutely. Speaker 3 (10:17) All right. Let me talk about going to prison. I mean, because that I mean, that was I mean, that's a shocker. Tell me about how how bad was it going through that case? You know Speaker 4 (10:27) what? Going through the process was horrible because it was something that went on for so long. I said earlier in this interview, when we originally found out you're talking about that was 2012. We didn't go to prison until 2023. So you found out in 2012? Yeah, that's Speaker 3 (10:48) a Speaker 4 (10:48) rotten year for you. Exactly. We found out what his business partner had been doing. It was all brought to light in 2012. It had been going on prior to that. But 2012 was kind of when it all came out. So all these years, you know, it went from a business dispute between my husband and his business partner to, you know. And FBI says, OK, there's nothing to this. Then after the show and we had notoriety, then they come back and they start looking into