Julie Chrisley

Julie Chrisley (née Hughes) is an American reality-television personality. She is best known as the matriarch of the USA Network reality series Chrisley Knows Best and its various spin-off programs.

Born in Westminster, South Carolina, to Baptist minister Harvey Hughes and his wife, Pam, she grew up in a modest double-wide trailer. She attended local schools and worked in a bank before meeting real-estate investor Todd Chrisley in the mid-1990s.

Chrisley began her television career with the premiere of Chrisley Knows Best on USA Network in March 2014, where she became recognized for her deadpan humor and traditional Southern cooking. In 2019, she hosted the digital cooking series What's Cooking with Julie Chrisley and appeared on the spin-off series Growing Up Chrisley from 2019 to 2022. Additionally, she and her husband launched the weekly podcast Chrisley Confessions in 2018 to discuss faith, parenting, and their legal experiences.

In August 2019, Chrisley and her husband were indicted on 12 counts including conspiracy to commit bank fraud and tax evasion. A federal jury found them guilty on all counts in June 2022. In November 2022, she was sentenced to seven years in prison, probation, and 17.8 million dollars in restitution. After reporting to prison in January 2023, an appeal led to a resentencing hearing in September 2024, where the court re-imposed her original 84-month term.

On May 27, 2025, U.S. President Donald Trump granted full presidential pardons to both Julie and Todd Chrisley, leading to their release from prison hours later. Following their release, the couple competed together as "Croissants" on season 14 of The Masked Singer in 2026.

In her personal life, she married Todd Chrisley on May 25, 1996. The couple has three children—Chase, Savannah, and Grayson—and she is the step-mother to Todd's children, Lindsie and Kyle. In 2016, they adopted Kyle's daughter, Chloe. Following her sentencing, her daughter Savannah assumed custody of Grayson and Chloe. Regarding her health, Chrisley was diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer in 2012, underwent a double mastectomy, and has been in remission since.