Tanya Tucker has maintained her country music career for more than 40 years, but it hasn't been without some bumps and bruises along the way. In an interview with Dan Rather for AXS TV's The Big Interview, the singer opens up about her very real struggle with clinical depression.

"I got really depressed -- clinically depressed," she tells Rather in the clip above, which is premiering exclusively on The Boot. The artist admits that she is not sure what specifically brought her depression on, noting that "it could be a lot of things. I mean, I'd lost both of my parents. When I lost my dad, that was pretty rough in '06; it was Thanksgiving morning. But when my mother went, it was just double ... and I was there when she left."

Tucker's struggle with depression didn't last weeks or even months; it's something she's fought with for years.

"It just cut me off at my knees," she reflects, "and I just didn't understand why this was happening to me."

Tucker explains that she even went for in-patient treatment, but couldn't handle it.

"I tried everything because I wanted to be better. And still trying, still trying," she says. "It's something I've not conquered yet, but I've come a long ways, a long ways."

The country legend has spoken openly about her struggle with the debilitating disease before. Previously, she attributed her depression to a cosmetic treatment gone wrong.

"[It] changed my voice ... I’ve had to struggle to reach certain notes, which I never had to do before ...," Tucker explains of the botched procedure. "I probably spent half a million dollars on doctors [to deal with the depression]. I took medications, did shock treatments and tried everything with the exception of being put into a straitjacket."

Thanks to the support of family, friends and medicine, Tucker has been able to successfully battle her depression. She embarked on a summer, fall and winter tour in 2015 and in 2014 was the subject of a Country Music Hall of Fame exhibit.

Rather's full interview with Tucker is set to air on AXS TV on Tuesday (Feb. 2) at 8PM ET.

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