"Allman and Shannon were engaged in 2012, when she was 24 and he was in his mid-60s.
“I just kept getting doors slammed in my face and doors slammed in my face when I was trying to creatively collaborate with people,” she said. “And for years, I took it so personally. I just was so bereaved and I felt so excluded and outcast and untalented. And now, I almost laugh when I look back and I realize, ‘Oh my gosh, God was protecting me the whole time. Every time I called an artist and said, ‘Do you want to collaborate on this song that Gregory and I wrote?' ‘No. No. I don't even want to hear it. I don't even want to have the conversation about it.' And in my grief and in my loneliness and in my desire for connection, it just felt so painful. And I look back now and I'm like, ‘Oh gosh, thank you so much God for protecting me.'”
First of all, never question the love that exists between two people. It's a many splendored thing and it ain't none of your bidness.
Having said that, GQ magazine once printed a guideline for men dating younger (as in much) women. The article's "guidelines" were that a woman should be at least half of your own age plus 7 years. A man in his mid-60s (65 per se) shouldn't date a woman younger than 39.5 (round to 40?). This isn't MY idea, but it's always seemed like a reasonably rational one to me.
I feel for Shannon. Any woman ... or man - especially in the deep south, where fingers point and rumors fly, should KNOW that folks are gonna talk whenever there's an age gap (gulf, abyss, chasm - you get it).
"Sending songs co-written with Gregg to musicians - only to get rudely snubbed" - are we talking about particular musicians? Family members, perhaps?
I hope that she's in a good place mentally, physically and financially.
I see her posts on IG fairly regularly and this article feels consistent: what she perceived to be rejection has actually turned out to be liberation.
I can imagine other musicians also dealing with grief and maybe not wanting to get pulled into something...
As I understand it Gregg had difficulty writing songs for a good while late in his life.
Warren Haynes recently finished one of Gregg's saying he felt he knew how Gregg would have completed it.
But you never know. Shannon and Gregg may have come up with some good material. If I were in a good band, I would listen and see.