Country Ever After star Criscilla Anderson has died at 45, seven years after being diagnosed with colon cancer.
Her death was confirmed on her Instagram page, where loved ones shared a message Anderson had written before she passed.
“If you’re reading this, I’ve finally slipped into the arms of Jesus — peacefully and surrounded by love,” she wrote. “Please don’t stay in the darkness of this moment. I fought hard and I loved deeply. I am not gone… I’m Home.”
In the message, Anderson also spoke directly to her children.
“My babies… I am watching over you. When a moment feels warm, familiar, or too beautiful to be coincidence — that’s me. I’m still mothering you. I’m still yours,” she wrote.
She ended with a final request: “Be gentle with each other. Hold my children close. And remember: heaven isn’t as far away as it feels. I love you all. Always. — Criscilla.”
Anderson, a professional hip-hop dancer, shared three children with country singer Coffey Anderson. The pair met through church friends in 2008 and married the following year. They went on to welcome daughters Emmarie and Everleigh and son Ethan; Criscilla was also stepmom to Coffey’s daughter, Savannah. Coffey filed for divorce in 2022.
The couple starred in the reality series Country Ever After, which followed their mixed “country vs. city” household as they raised their kids and navigated Criscilla’s cancer journey.
Beyond TV, Anderson built a successful dance career, performing with artists like Britney Spears, Rihanna, and Snoop Dogg. She also choreographed for the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders and appeared in their Netflix series.
She was first diagnosed with colon cancer in 2018. By 2019, doctors told her it had progressed to stage four and had spread up her back. At the time, she told the Daily Mail, “My first thought was that I have three babies that need their mom. It was the darkest day of my life.”
Coffey shared an emotional tribute after her passing, writing: “Criscilla defined strength and fighter like no other person on the planet. Heaven gained a star today.” He added, “I’m glad you get to meet the two babies we lost… I love you more.”