Billy McKnight, the ex boyfriend of country singer Mindy McCready, says the fact she committed suicide isn't shocking.

During an appearance on the Today Show, McKnight said:

"As sad as it is, it didn’t come as a major shock, because she’s just been battling demons for so long. I was around her when she attempted suicide twice, so I knew it was in her.”

McCready, 37, and McKnight have a six-year-old son together.

According to the Cleburne County Sheriff's Office, McCready died "from what appears to be a single self-inflicted gunshot wound."

The singer has a long history of battling substance abuse.

Fellow country artists Tweeted about McCready's death.

Carrie Underwood wrote, "I grew up listening to Mindy McCready...so sad for her family tonight. Many prayers are going out to them."

Wynonna Judd wrote, "Oh my! Mindy. Dear sweet girl. This is so sad. It just breaks my heart what addiction continues to take from this life."

NBC

Country singer Mindy McCready, 37, was found dead today in an apparent suicide, according to reports.

Andrea Canning, a reporter with NBC Dateline, Tweeted, “Just got a call from Mindy McCready's best friend that she shot and killed herself this evening. My heart breaks for her two boys. RIP”

Official confirmation of the death and the cause of death has not been made, but E! News reports the singer's body was found in Heber Springs, Ark. today, just a day after her father Tim left to return to his Florida home after an extended visit with his daughter.

A source tells E!, "She was in good spirits and seemed to be fine," when her father left. Neighbors reportedly heard gunshots at her home today and a source tells E!, "She shot herself and the dog."

After McCready's boyfriend David Wilson, 34, died of gunshot wounds just over a month ago, the singer was involuntarily admitted to rehab and was struggling with a bout of recurring substance abuse, according to her father:

"Since boyfriend [Wilson] shot himself she has been in bed for 3 weeks. Sleeps all day. Drinks all night and is taking Rx drugs. Not bathing or even helping take care of her 2 children," her father testified, according to court documents.

McCready had lost custody of her two sons - Zander, 6, and Zayne, 9 months -- at least temporarily, after a court deemed her an unfit parent just after Wilson's death.

An investigation into Wilson's death is still incomplete, though McCready had claimed it was suicide from a self-inflicted gun wound. She had balked the suggestion she could have murdered her boyfriend, saying, on NBC's Dateline on Jan. 29, "He didn't just touch my heart, he touched my soul."

She later told E! News she was drinking "too much alcohol because she was still mourning David's passing."

Mindy McCready has entered rehab to be treated for mental health and alcohol issues.

The 37-year-old "Ten Thousand Angels" singer lost her boyfriend, David Wilson, last month, after he reportedly shot himself.

McCready appeared on NBC's Dateline and denied any involvement in his death.

During the interview, she said, "I've never gone through anything this painful. He didn't just touch my heart, he touched my soul."

As for her alcohol abuse, McCready said she has "indulged in too much alcohol because she was still mourning David's passing."

Mindy McCready has opened up about the sudden death of her boyfriend David Wilson, and while police reports indicate that the 34-year-old record producer died from a self inflicted gunshot wound, there has been some speculation that McCready was somehow involved in his death. The investigation as to the cause of death remains open, but the Cleburne County Sheriff's Department said there are no suspects in the case.

McCready was with Wilson after the shooting, and she told The Today Show, "I just started screaming, calling 911. I lay down next to him and just just pleaded with him not to die. He was responding."

McCready also said that the bullet that killed Wilson wasn't found until the next day because "it was in the dog's mouth," and when asked point blank whether she shot Wilson, she said, "Oh, my God, no. He was my life. We were each others' life."

Such a tragedy!

Country singer Mindy McCready's boyfriend David Wilson committed suicide at their Heber Springs, Ark. home on January 13.

According to police reports, the 34-year-old record producer died from a self inflicted gunshot wound, New York Daily News reports.

"Today, we mourn the loss of my life partner and my children's father, David Wilson. David was my soulmate; he was a caregiver and guiding hand to our sons, Zander and Zayne. He was a precious gift from God to all of us and, yesterday, he returned home and is now with his mother and father," McCready said in a statement.

Wilson was the father to McCready's 9-month-old son Zayne, as well as a father figure to Zander, 6, from a previous relationship.

No further details have been released at this time.

Following her child-welfare hearing earlier this week, Mindy McCready is sitting down with ABC's 20/20 to talk about the accusations that she kidnapped her five-year-old son Zander.

During the interview, the country star currently pregnant with twins, said the following:

“I ... will not ever think that me taking my own child, that I carried for nine months, that I gave birth to in the hospital by myself would ever be breaking the law. What I did was to protect my child, and there’s not a person in the world that’s going to tell me that that is wrong.”

McCready had taken Zander from her mother's Florida home last week (Gayle McCready is Zander's legal guardian), and several days later authorities found the troubled country singer and her son hiding in a closet in Arkansas.

The singer also revealed the moment the U.S. marshals arrived to take her son, Zander. She adds:

“He was screaming: ‘Please don’t touch me, please don’t touch me, please don’t touch my mommy. Please, leave me alone, I want to be with my mommy."

McCready lost custody of Zander in 2007. He is now in foster care.

Despite initial accusations that she kidnapped her 5-year-old son Zander last week, Mindy McCready left her child-welfare hearing yesterday in good spirits.

"WE WON!!! ZAN STAYS," McCready wrote in a text message to Headline News' Jane Velez Mitchell last night. "Court details sealed but we love Judge Lee W. Harrod."

McCready took Zander from her mother's Florida home last week (Gayle McCready is Zander's legal guardian), and several days later authorities found the troubled country singer and her son hiding in a closet in Arkansas, at a residence presumed to belong to her boyfriend. It was also recently revealed that McCready is seven months pregnant with twins, which may have helped her earn some sympathy at the hearing.

On Monday, McCready told reporters that she couldn't talk about the ruling but said she's "a happy girl right now." McCready added, "I love Judge Harrod, I'll tell you that. He's a good man."

Yesterday police found troubled country music singer Mindy McCready and son Zander hiding in her boyfriend's Arkansas home, according to CNN.

U.S. Marshal David Rahbany said, "The child appeared to be in good condition when we found him ... he was in the closet with his mother." After authorities placed the residence under surveillance, they found the two, who were reported missing earlier this week.

Zander is currently in the custody of the Arkansas Division of Children and Family Services, and he will be returned to McCready's mother Gayle, who is his legal guardian. Gayle McCready and husband Michael Inge said in a statement, "We feel sorrow for Zander because he's traumatized, and for Mindy. We just hope she does the right thing from here on out and that this is a wake-up call for her."

After McCready took her son from her mother's Florida home last week and asked a court to restore custody to her due to safety concerns, a Florida judge signed an emergency "pickup order" on Thursday authorizing law enforcement officers to find the child. McCready was not charged with a crime, but Rahbany said it's unclear whether she will be facing any future charges.