With 60 top 10 hits, a boatload of prestigious awards and plenty of hard-earned wisdom under her big-buckled belt, Reba McEntire is having a major moment.
She’s mad about her partner of more than four years, actor Rex Linn. She’s a kick-ass mega mentor on The Voice. And, this month, she makes a triumphant return to episodic TV with NBC’s new sitcom, Happy’s Place, playing Bobbie, a woman who inherits a bar from her father only to learn she must share it with an earnest half sister she never knew about.
“Oh my gosh, I’m grateful for everything,” McEntire, 69, gushes. “I get to do my singing, and now I get to be on The Voice and Happy’s Place. I’m pinching myself.”
Here, the superstar tells Us Weekly how she put it all together.
You seem to have this great aura around you. Are you happier now than you’ve been in a long time?
I would say that’s true. I’ve got two great jobs. I have a love of my life, Rex Linn. We’ve been together for almost five years. And my health is good, his health is good. My family is healthy. What more could I ask for?
You and Rex get to work together on ‘Happy’s Place’ [he’s Emmett, the chef]. Do you and he have a similar dynamic in your personal life to what we see on screen?
Rex and I are best friends. We have the same likes and dislikes. We’re foodies. We love to cook. We each wanted to be a cowboy and a cowgirl. Then we got into the entertainment business instead. Our dynamic works on and off-screen.
Did you set any ground rules about working together, mixing business and pleasure?
No. We love to act. We want to be prepared. So, he and I rehearse a lot. We did a Lifetime movie together. We did Big Sky on ABC. We’ve both been on Young Sheldon, and now we’re doing Happy’s Place together, so we get real serious about rehearsals and we know our dialogue for sure. To have fun and be comfortable with dialogue, you’ve got to know it. We work hard on that.
How do you spend your quiet moments at home together?
It depends if there’s a college football game on. If so, we’ll be in front of the television watching football. If not, we’re rehearsing or going outside and feeding the birds and watering the rose garden. We just love to be together.
What team do you root for?
University of Texas, Austin. The Longhorns!
How would you say this relationship has changed you?
I think we have made each other better. Rex brings out the little girl in me and I have fun. I’m dorky, I’m goofy. He is too. We love to laugh, and we love each other. We both love watching television. We’re always on the lookout for a new series or movie to watch. He says that it’s his homework, watching other actors and learning from them. I do it for pure enjoyment. Right now we’re streaming The Penguin.
Have your views on marriage changed? Do you want to get married again?
It really makes no difference to me. I’m fine with the way we are. If Rex ever wants to get married, then we’ll talk about it, but I’m fine. I love our relationship 100 percent.
What’s the key to your relationship?
I have his back, and he has mine. That’s very important. I feel very safe with Rex.
You seem incredibly confident and calm even as you take on so many new projects. Do you feel a better sense of strength and security?
I think it’s a newfound strength. Once you’re confident in your love life, your at-home life, then you can go out and conquer the world.
When you finally realized that, did new possibilities open up?
It seems so. I didn’t expect it. But everything just gelled, the success of us getting to work together, my touring and everything else fell into place. Timing is everything and everything happens for a reason.
You say that often — everything happens for a reason. How has that rung true in your life?
It’s been true every step of the way. When I started in the music business, I didn’t make big leaps and bounds. I didn’t have one thing that catapulted me into success. My growth was little bitty steps every year, but steady. I knew nothing about the music business, so when good things happened, I was very thankful. It also gave me time to build a team of friends and people in the business who could teach me, and I had fun learning.
How have you stayed grounded while enjoying such a successful career?
I surround myself with people who are not yes-people. If I ever get a little egotistical, a little too big for my britches, they always say, “Don’t get too big for your raisin!”
Faith has played a big part in your life as well. How has your faith shaped you?
I certainly wouldn’t be where I am right now without my faith. God is my rock, my everything. I wake up in the morning talking to him and I go to sleep at night talking to him. He’s my guidance, my angel, my Holy Spirit, my mother Mary. I’ve got the whole team there on my side.
Your son, Shelby Blackstock [a 34-year-old race car driver], has been married almost three years now. Are you itching for some grandbabies?
Oh, you know it! I sure am! I can’t wait.
If you could go back to day one of parenting, what would you tell yourself?
Slow down. Relish it. Shelby jokes that he thought his mama was a video camera. I had the camera up all the time, taking video and pictures. I spent every minute I could with Shelby. I absolutely loved that child. Still do. I was almost 35 when I had him, so it was later in life, and I was ready.
What kind of grandma do you think you’ll be?
A good one! I want them to call me Grrrand-ma-MA [pronounced with a dramatic trill]. They’ll have to learn how to roll their Rs, but they’ll get it. [Laughs.]
Which of your songs do people like to talk to you about most?
That would be “Fancy.” It wasn’t a No. 1 record, but that’s what everybody associates with me.
What song speaks to you the most at this point in your life?
“I’m a Survivor.” And many people, myself included, relate to “Is There Life Out There?” I choose songs because they touch my heart, and if I do my job when I’m singing it, hopefully it’ll touch your heart too.
Is that what you look for when you’re coaching on ‘The Voice’?
Absolutely. They don’t have to have the perfect voice. They don’t have to be on pitch. They have to make me feel something.
You made Snoop Dogg cry recently when you scooped up a contestant.
Oh, he’s a pussycat. He’s so much fun. And he does get very emotional. He gets involved. So yeah, I was handing him quite a few Kleenexes.
What have you learned about Snoop Dogg since he joined ‘The Voice’ this season? And Michael Bublé, the other new coach this season?
Snoop is in his own lane. He is different from anyone I’ve ever run into, and everybody loves him. He’s a really great addition. With Michael Bublé, he’s just the biggest-hearted, biggest kid. I love him with all my heart. He’s so much fun to work with, to play with and we’re having a blast on The Voice because of him. Gwen and I laugh our butts off at him. He and Gwen are good buddies.
There’s speculation that this may be your last season on ‘The Voice.’ Is there any truth to that?
I love The Voice. I love being a part of the NBC family with Happy’s Place. I’m having the time of my life.
You’ve always remained true to your country roots. Why has that been important to you?
I love my country roots. I grew up on a working cattle ranch. I was a cowgirl, and I’ll never get away from that.
Do you ever look back at your rodeo days?
Not fondly! [Laughs.] I wasn’t that good.
You’ve played many wonderful roles. If you could go back and repeat any of them, which would it be?
Annie Oakley in Annie Get Your Gun. I’d do that again. I love being on Broadway. And she was someone I admired, even before I started school. There was a television show, Annie Oakley, that we’d watch — when the TV would work.
People are still obsessed with Reba the TV show. What is it about that series that still resonates?
People related to it because there are many in that situation across the United States — teen pregnancy, moving in with mom, challenging things happening. But primarily, it’s the heart of it. It was funny, clever, mischievous, dorky, but it had a lot of heart.
It seems like you create a close family environment on your shows.
It’s very important that everybody joins together, has fun together on set and off the property. I mean, we even have sessions at our house. Everybody comes over and we go over dialogue and rehearse.
Are you hoping to take home another win for ‘The Voice’?
I could! My team is very, very strong.
We hear you’re working on another album. Can you tell us about it?
It’s full of great songs — great music from great musicians and writers. I love to record. And it’s so much fun to find songs. I don’t write many myself. But I do love to listen to other people’s creations.
Did you make a conscious decision early on to seek out other musicians’ songs that conveyed your message?
I’m not a songwriter. I like to let people do their own job. I go to the songwriters for songs, and I let producers produce. I let the musicians play their instruments, and I do the singing. I listen to thousands of songs to find 15 or 20 to record. That’s my mission. I’m always looking for great songs.
You turn 70 next year. What are you most looking forward to in the next decade?
The next morning! I’ll have made it. In the next decade, I hope I’m doing what I’m doing now. Having fun, loving my work, loving my days off from work, which recently haven’t been very many. Spending time with my family and my friends. Wow. If it can get any better, I can’t wait to see it.
You obviously still have so much more to give, but what do you hope people look back and say about you?
I want my legacy to be that everybody thought I was a kind and fair person and fun to be around.
Happy’s Place premieres Friday, October 18, at 8 pm on NBC.
For more on Reba, watch the exclusive video above and pick up the latest issue of Us Weekly — on newsstands now.
