BEN Folds has had a highly successful music career and is also known for his many relationships.
Now, fans want to know more about the singer-songwriter’s past marriages amidst news he finalized his divorce with his fifth wife.
Ben Folds performs in concert at Austin360 Amphitheater on September 18, 2019, in Austin, Texas[/caption]
Who are Ben Folds’ ex-wives?
Ben Folds has been married five times.
He discussed his first four marriages in a September 2012 article for The Sydney Morning Herald.
He was married to his first wife, Anna Goodman, from 1987 to 1992, whom he described as his “oldest friend.”
Ben said that she “inspired me to play music.”
“We met as six-year-olds at elementary school in North Carolina. She was playing Scott Joplin at six; it blew me away she could do ragtime at such a young age,” he continued.
“Anna and I felt pressure to do something with our lives. Getting married was the thing you had to do. My mum was barely 20 when she had me – but it’s what you did.
“We had different ideas on how to live as a couple and be engaged in our work. No one ever explained those differences and how to strike a balance,” he continued, in part.
“When we split, both of us found a lot more success in our lives. She is a dear close friend and always will be. Some of the songs on my band Ben Folds Five’s first two albums are collaborations with Anna.”
Ben then wed Kate Rosen in 1996, but the pair broke up in 1997.
“Ben Folds Five took off in the mid-’90s; we were constantly on tour. I couldn’t be in a stay-at-home relationship. I needed to do my thing. I got married briefly to Kate [Rosen, in 1996]. You could say I was a hopeless romantic,” he said in The Sydney Morning Herald article.
In 1999, Ben tied the knot with Australian musician Frally Hynes, and the pair were together for about seven years and welcomed two kids together.
“Frally Hynes and I were married from 1999 to 2006 and have twins, Gracie and Louie. I lived in Adelaide during that time and would travel to the US to play gigs to earn money for the family,” he said.
“It was a heavy load, but we were blessed because of the twins. I had just made my first solo album and was flying back and forth from the US.
“I’d be up all night burping one kid while the other was just waking. I was constantly tired. I cut everything out of my schedule I could. I learnt you can’t make everyone happy all the time.
“Finally, Frally and the kids moved to Nashville, where I live. She is the best mother those kids could have and we do a great job keeping the family as together as we can,” he continued.
Ben Folds and Fleur Folds at the 2nd Annual David Lynch Foundation’s Change Begins Within Benefit Celebration at The Metropolitan Museum of Art on December 13, 2010[/caption]
Ben was then married to Fleur Folds from 2007 to 2011.
At the time of The Sydney Morning Herald article, he said that the pair “split a year ago after four years together.”
“I have actually learnt nothing about women over the years. The key is learning about yourself and why you do what you do,” he continued.
“That’s the thing about a relationship: if you’re doing it over and over again and it’s not working, you have to look within and ask yourself why. As much as I love the idea of being married, it’s not for me.
“I always jumped into situations too quickly, thinking that was the right thing. I’m reckless, which has helped in my music, but taking risks in my private life hasn’t measured up.”
As People reported, court documents show that Folds and his fifth wife, Emma Sandall, finalized their divorce on February 27, 2024, after the former filed for divorce in December 2023, citing irreconcilable differences.
Per the outlet, the documents also reveal that Ben had to pay Emma $475,000 for any interest she has in their Nashville, Tennessee home.
“Immediately upon receipt of said funds from husband, wife shall take the necessary steps to execute a quitclaim deed relinquishing all right, title, and interest to the marital home to husband,” the documents state.
People also states, “Folds has been ordered to pay Sandall $650,000 in monthly payments of $27,083.33 over 24 months, and her car insurance for 12 months.”
It continues, “The musician will also pay Sandall $50,000 for furniture, sign over the title to a 2016 Honda CR-V that was initially under his name, and give her $210,000 AUD from a Nati.”
The former couple wed in Hawaii on January 20, 2017.
Who is Ben Folds?
Ben was born in 1966 in Greensboro, North Carolina.
The 57-year-old singer-songwriter has built an accomplished music career.
According to his website, he “is widely regarded as one of the major music influencers of our generation.”
He has “created an enormous body of genre-bending music” which includes pop albums with the rock trio, Ben Folds Five, as well as multiple solo albums and many collaborative records.
Ben tours as a pop singer, “while also performing with some of the world’s greatest symphony orchestras, and currently serving as the first ever Artistic Advisor to the National Symphony Orchestra at the Kennedy Center.”
He is also a New York Times Best Selling author and podcast host who often guest stars in films and television shows, per his website.
The artist also received an Emmy nomination “for his composition of a new theme song for a popular Peanuts TV special.”
Ben is also an “advocate for the arts” who “serves on the Board of the Arts Action Fund, Planet Word and the Nashville Symphony, and has launched a music education initiative for kids in his home state of North Carolina.”
What is Ben Folds’ net worth?
Ben’s successful music career has earned him a high net worth.
According to Celebrity Net Worth, the singer-songwriter’s wealth is valued at $5 million.