• Lenedra Carroll is a 67-year old Caucasian entrepreneur, author, visual artist, singer, and businesswoman.
• She was born in 1952 in Alaska and raised with Mormon beliefs.
• Lenedra is the mother of singer-songwriter Jewel Kilcher, and is credited with discovering her talent.
• Her current net worth is estimated at $13 million, mainly due to her five-year stint as Jewel's manager.
• She is now retired, enjoying a lavish lifestyle and occasionally contributing to charity.



Who is Lenedra Carroll?

Born at some point in 1952, in Alaska USA, Lenedra Carroll is a 67-year old Caucasian entrepreneur, author, visual artist, singer and businesswoman. Her fame comes from her family’s various involvements in show business, primarily her daughter Jewel Kilcher’s massive success as a singer-songwriter, but also her ex-husband’s and other children’s long-term presence on the TV screen in the Discovery Channel reality TV series entitled “Alaska: The Last Frontier.” Lenedra has personally achieved a great deal over the course of her extensive career from an unspecified date.

Childhood and education: A difficult upbringing

Lenedra hails from a modest farming Alaskan family, headed by her father Jasper Jewel Carroll, and mother Arva Carroll. She and her three siblings of unknown names and ages were raised with Mormon beliefs.

They initially lived in a thus-far unmentioned Alaskan village, eventually moving to Wrangell Island. The family moved once more after a while, settling in Homer when Lenedra was a teenager. This is where Carroll mostly attended and eventually matriculated from a local high school in 1970, but chose not to pursue a college degree afterwards.

Lenedra and Atz Kilcher

Both of Jewel Kilcher’s parents owe their fame to having met each other. They entered a long-term relationship in Homer sometime in the late 1960’s, while their wedding also took place in this period. Shane Kilcher is their oldest child, born in 1971, followed up by Jewel Kilcher on 23rd of May 1974, and lastly Atz Lee Kilcher, born in 1977. The couple ultimately split up four years after their second son’s birth, due to to-this-day unexplained irreconcilable differences.

Lenedra promptly left the entire family, as Atz was awarded custody of all the children. However, as revealed by Jewel’s memoir many years later, keeping the children wasn’t enough for Atz, and he began abusing alcohol and displaying violent behavior towards Jewel and her brothers following Lenedra’s departure. Carroll most likely knew about this, though never returned to help her kids.

What happened to the family?

Atz remained with the children in the family homestead, living off the land as much as necessary, to the point of even using an outhouse due to a lack of plumbing in the family home. His physical abuse of the children continued for the next seven years on and off, until Jewel abruptly left the property and never returned. The two sons stayed with their father, married and helped the homestead prosper.

In 2010 the family was doing so well that they signed a contract with Discovery Channel, bringing their own show to the screen in 2011, which is set for its upcoming 10th season in 2020. Meanwhile, Jewel found her own success as a singer-songwriter, finishing a Michigan fine arts school on a vocal scholarship, before venturing out into the unknown with just a guitar and her voice.

The true extent of Jewel’s success

As of early 2020, Jewel Kilcher is the proud holder of 21 awards and four Grammy Award nominations. Her debut album entitled “Pieces of You” from 1995 is now rated 12-times platinum, and she has released 12 albums thus far, the latest being “Picking Up the Pieces” from 2015, prior to the release of which she confessed the untold truth about Lenedra.

Her career: A wild ride in the least

Lenedra was a housewife until the moment her divorce from Atz was official in 1981, after which she needed to find a way to earn a livelihood. She is thought to have performed various odd jobs at this time, until eventually settling to work as a teacher and casual vocal performer for a number of years, approximately for a decade and a half. All this time, Lenedra had no contact with any of her children, but this changed in 1998, when she became Jewel’s manager, thereby replacing the woman who initially discovered her talent and brought her into the limelight – Inga Vainshtein. The dispute over managerial rights was taken to court, and Vainshtein was ultimately ruled guilty of violating California Labor Code Section 1700.5 – acting as an unlicensed talent agency.

Lenedra Carroll

Lenedra remained then close to her daughter, raking in profit at a rate which was beyond compare to anything she had previously been earning on her own. In 2001 Lenedra published her first book, entitled “The Architecture of All Abundance: Creating a Successful Life in the Material World”. However, she didn’t permanently keep this position.

Lenedra on ‘fending off the sharks’

Oprah Winfrey herself seems to have found Lenedra’s book an interesting read, having featured a part from it on her website. On the matter of dealing with ‘sharks’ in the entertainment industry, Lenedra said ‘I asked myself, ‘What else is at play here? What’s below the surface?’ I looked right into his eyes and had a flash: he’s wearing a shark costume! Under the costume, there was simply a man.’

What broke them up this time?

As evidenced in vivid detail in Jewel’s 2015 memoir entitled “Never Broken – Songs Are Only Half the Story”, her own mother had basically been robbing her for five years until she figured it out. An excerpt reads ‘I found out that not only was all my money gone, but I was several million dollars in debt. The same year I came to believe that my mom, who was also my manager, was not the person I thought she was.’ Upon realizing that she was a constantly growing worldwide superstar with no cash in her pocket in 2003, Jewel fired Lenedra from the position. The two haven’t spoken since.

What happened to Lenedra?

Carroll ended up a multi-millionaire after five years of managing her daughter, hence she never returned to relative poverty after they split.

She used small portions of her wealth to invest in her own musical career on occasion – releasing the solo album entitled “Beyond Words” in 2007, and “Daybreak Song” in 2009. Since then, she’s been using some of her money to contribute to charity, maintaining a lavish lifestyle with the rest of it.

The co-benefactor

Lenedra, Jewel and Shane Kilcher came together around the year 2000 to form the non-profit charity organization headed by Jewel called Higher Ground for Humanity. Since being fired, Carroll has also been excluded from the organization’s leadership, but her legacy as one of its founders had been contributing to her fame and income until its shutdown in 2005.

What does she do now?

Slowly nearing two decades of career dormancy in 2020, Lenedra seems to be settled with what she has left over from her experience as a manager.

She is highly unlikely to make a comeback into the entertainment industry, considering her age is 67.

Do her sons keep in touch?

Ever since the scandal with her daughter, Carroll has mostly been out of the Kilcher picture. Casual catch-ups do occur from time to time, as Atz has maintained contact with her since marrying his second wife – Bonnie Kilcher-Dupree.

What is Lenedra Carroll’s net worth?

Lenedra’s current wealth is approximately $13 million in early 2020, almost all of this income by being her daughter’s manager from 1998 to 2003, whose net worth is more than $30 million. Her husband’s net worth is close to $5 million. She is not expected to significantly increase her earnings in the years to come.

Body measurements

Lenedra’s physical features are:

  • Hair: Bright blond
  • Eyes: Light blue
  • Height: 5ft 6ins (168cm)
  • Complexion: Pale

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As a Freelance Writer at Biography Pedia, I oversee the full writing process, from in-depth research to the development of compelling narratives, ensuring accuracy and excellence in our output. Our goal is to produce insightful profiles that deeply explore the lives of prominent figures in business, entertainment, and other fields. Through meticulous research and engaging storytelling, we spotlight the significant journeys and achievements of individuals who captivate and inspire our readers.

4 Comments

  1. If she was born in 1952 she isn’t 67 – Maybe try using a calculator for your next bio

    • I met Lanedra Carroll and Atz Kilcher (in Toronto Canada September 1,1973 & Atz told me he was Lanedra’s Brother Otto Carroll and their fathers name was Yule Carroll and Nedra told me her Birthday was October 16,1958 and I’m the Stranger from the East in Jewel’s Song Enter from the East for Atz gave me his sister’s hand in marriage because I had a Draft Card for the Vietnam War at an LRY Confrence at a Unitarian Universalist Church and all that’s not said read Jewel’s poem “I don’t suppose raindrops “ and “Long is a Cloak” and “Bukowski’s Widow” they ask do you remember because Nedra and I talked about that Widow from Alaska because I’m half Polish and Italian

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