Brandon Blackstock had taken a step back from the spotlight in the years prior to his death. Blackstock, who died in August at the age of 48, was last publicly spotted at the Critics' Choice Awards in January 2020. He walked the red carpet with then-wife Kelly Clarkson months before she filed for divorce that June. A former music manager, Blackstock relocated to Montana amid their separation, where he founded the local Valley View Rodeo. "Valley View is a multi-faceted organization dedicated to keeping the Western lifestyle alive in the modern day," a website description reads.