Fan-Favorite Country Ever After Star Criscilla Anderson Dies at 45

This one hurts. Criscilla Anderson — hip-hop dancer, choreographer, and one-half of Netflix's Country Ever After alongside her husband, country singer Coffey Anderson — has died at 45 after a long fight with stage three colon cancer.

What happened

Her close friend and photographer, Lindsey, shared the news on social media and posted a message Criscilla wrote for her family and friends to see after she was gone. It is as gracious and grounded as you would expect from someone who kept finding light in a brutal situation.

'If you're reading this, I've finally slipped into the arms of Jesus, peacefully and surrounded by love. 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 rest of that message, Criscilla spoke directly to her four kids, telling them to look for her in those warm, too-perfect-to-be-coincidence moments — she even tagged it with #everybutterfly — and thanked her family and Lindsey for holding her up through the fight. She asked everyone to be gentle with each other and keep her children close.

Her husband and friends respond

Coffey Anderson posted an emotional tribute, calling his wife a true fighter and saying heaven gained a star. Lindsey, who has been regularly updating fans on Criscilla's health over the past few months, wrote that being by her side to the end was the greatest honor of her life.

The road she walked

• 2018: Criscilla is diagnosed with colon cancer.
• 2021: After treatment, she is declared cancer-free.
• 2022: The cancer returns and aggressively impacts her lymph nodes.
• 2024: In recent months, Lindsey continues to share health updates on Instagram as Criscilla's condition worsens.

Criscilla Anderson was a force — on stage, on camera, and at home. If you watched Country Ever After, you already know that. This news is rough, and my heart is with Coffey, their four kids, and everyone who loved her.