Reba McEntire
Reba Nell McEntire (born March 28, 1955),[1][2] or simply Reba (/ˈriːbə/ REE-bə), is an American country music singer and actress. Dubbed "the Queen of Country",[3] she has sold more than 75 million records worldwide.[4] Since the 1970s, McEntire has placed over 100 singles on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, 25 of which reached the number one spot.[5]
For the album, see Reba McEntire (album).
Reba McEntire
- Singer
- actress
- television personality
- producer
- businesswoman
- author
1975–present
-
Charlie Battles(m. 1976; div. 1987)
-
Narvel Blackstock(m. 1989; div. 2015)
- Susie McEntire (sister)
- Pake McEntire (brother)
Vocals
The Singing McEntires
An actress in films and television,[6] McEntire starred in the television series Reba, which aired for six seasons. She also owns several businesses, including a restaurant and a clothing line.[7]
One of four children, McEntire was born and raised in Oklahoma. With her mother's help, she and her siblings formed the Singing McEntires, which played at local events and recorded for a small label. McEntire later enrolled at Southeastern Oklahoma State University and studied to become a public school teacher. She also continued to occasionally perform and was heard singing at a rodeo event by country performer Red Steagall. Drawn to her singing voice, Steagall helped McEntire secure a country music recording contract with PolyGram/Mercury Records in 1975. She relocated to Nashville, Tennessee, with her mother that year.
Over the next several years, PolyGram/Mercury released a series of McEntire's albums and singles, which amounted to little success. In the early 1980s, McEntire's music gained more momentum through several top ten country songs, including "(You Lift Me) Up to Heaven", "I'm Not That Lonely Yet", and her first number one "Can't Even Get the Blues". Yet McEntire became increasingly unhappy with her career trajectory and signed with MCA Records in 1984. Her second MCA album titled My Kind of Country (1984) became her breakout release, spawning two number one Billboard country singles and pointed toward a more traditional musical style. Through the 1980s, McEntire released seven more studio albums and had ten more number one country hits. Her number one singles included "One Promise Too Late", "The Last One to Know", and the Grammy Award-winning "Whoever's in New England".
In 1991, McEntire lost eight of her band members in a plane crash in San Diego, California. The experience led to McEntire's critically acclaimed album For My Broken Heart, which is her highest-selling album to date. She followed it with several commercially successful albums during the 1990s, including Read My Mind (1994), What If It's You (1996), and If You See Him (1998). These albums featured the number one country singles "The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter", "How Was I to Know", and a duet with Brooks and Dunn called "If You See Him/If You See Her". McEntire's acting career began in January 1990 when she made her film debut in Tremors. In 2001, she played the role of Annie Oakley in the Broadway musical Annie Get Your Gun. The same year, The WB launched the TV series Reba, in which she starred. More recently, she has guest-starred on Young Sheldon as June Ballard. Since 2023, McEntire has been featured as a coach on The Voice.
Acting career[edit]
1989–1999: Entry into film and television acting[edit]
In 1989, she obtained her first film role playing Heather Gummer in the horror comedy Tremors, along with Kevin Bacon. The film told the story of a small group of people living in Nevada who were fighting subterranean worm-like creatures. After the film's release in 1990, McEntire developed a strong interest in acting and made it her second career. The film earned McEntire a nomination for Best Supporting Actress at the 1991 Saturn Awards.[147][148] The following year, she starred along with Kenny Rogers and Burt Reynolds in the made-for-television movies The Gambler Returns: The Luck of the Draw and The Man From Left Field. In 1994, McEntire worked with director Rob Reiner in the film North, playing Ma Tex.
In 1994, McEntire starred in Is There Life Out There? a television movie based on her song of the same name. The following year, she appeared in Buffalo Girls, which was based upon the life of western cowgirl Calamity Jane (played by Anjelica Huston). Playing Jane's friend Annie Oakley, Buffalo Girls was nominated for an Emmy award.[149] In 1996, McEntire was cast by director James Cameron as Molly Brown in his film Titanic. However, when it became apparent production for the film would extend well beyond its original length, McEntire had to turn down the part, as she had already scheduled prior concert engagements. The role was recast with Kathy Bates.[150] In 1998, she starred as Lizzie Brooks in Forever Love, which was based upon McEntire's hit single of the same name.[151]
2000–2007: Broadway and television series[edit]
In early 2001, McEntire expanded into theater, starring in the Broadway revival of Annie Get Your Gun. Playing Annie Oakley (whom she had previously portrayed in Buffalo Girls), her performance was critically acclaimed by several newspapers, including The New York Times, which commented, "Without qualification the best performance by an actress in a musical comedy this season."[152] McEntire personally called the musical "some of the hardest work I've ever done in my life".[153]
In 2005, McEntire starred as Nellie Forbush in the Carnegie Hall concert production of the Broadway musical South Pacific with Alec Baldwin as Luther Billis and Brian Stokes Mitchell as Emile de Becque, directed by Walter Bobbie and with an adapted script by David Ives. The concert was broadcast as part of the Great Performances series in 2006.[154]
In October 2001, McEntire premiered her half-hour television sitcom Reba on The WB. The show was based around divorced mother Reba Hart, who learns how to handle life situations after her husband divorces her in order to marry his dental hygienist––with whom he had been cheating and gotten pregnant––and then their teenage daughter becomes pregnant as well.[155] Reba garnered critical acclaim and success, becoming the network's highest-rated television show for adults ranging from the ages of 18 to 49. The show ran for six seasons and earned McEntire a nomination for a Golden Globe award.[148] It was canceled on February 18, 2007; the series finale had 8.7 million viewers.[156]
Since 2011: Brief television return and current projects[edit]
In September 2011, McEntire confirmed on her website that ABC had ordered a pilot for her second television series Malibu Country.[157] McEntire played a divorced mother of two who moves to Malibu, California to restart her music career.[157] The pilot was filmed in April 2012 and began production on its first season in August. It was announced that the pilot for Malibu Country would premiere November 2, 2012. The show was broadcast Friday nights at 8:30/7:30c on ABC.[158] On May 11, 2012, McEntire tweeted that the show had been picked up.[159] She also was the host in the 2011 NASCAR Award Show in Las Vegas.
Despite reports that Malibu Country was the most-watched freshman comedy in its debut season (8.7 million),[160] the show was canceled on May 10, 2013, after eighteen episodes.
In 2016, McEntire was a guest panelist during season 11 of America's Got Talent. During one of the Judge Cuts, McEntire gave the Golden Buzzer to contortionist Sofie Dossi.[161]
In January 2017, it was announced that McEntire would star and produce a Southern drama series for ABC titled Red Blooded.[162][163] It was reported in May that ABC ultimately turned down the show, so it moved to being shopped around to other networks.[164] In January 2018, Reba was chosen to portray KFC's first female Colonel Sanders. The commercials ran through the end of April 2018.[165]
In 2020, McEntire launched a podcast titled Living & Learning hosted by herself and her former Reba co-star Melissa Peterman.[166]
She made a cameo appearance in the 2021 comedy film Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar as a water spirit named Trish after Annie Mumolo and Kristen Wiig, who wrote, produced, and starred in the film, wrote her an "impassioned letter" asking her to join the film. Director Josh Greenbaum said in an interview, "There's some casting that just clicks. Reba is not only 100% authentic, we knew she would be game."[167]
In May 2022, ABC announced that McEntire will be joining the cast of the drama Big Sky, playing local businesswoman Sunny Barnes in season 3.[168]
McEntire starred in Reba McEntire's The Hammer on Lifetime in 2023. The country star will reunite with her Reba sitcom co-star Melissa Peterman in the film inspired by the life of traveling Nevada circuit judge Kim Wheeler.[169] The film also stars McEntire's boyfriend Rex Linn as Bart Crawford, a mysterious cowboy with unknown motives, and Kay Shioma Metchie as Vicky, the tough talking bailiff who serves as Kim's right hand and trusted friend.
In May 2023, it was announced that McEntire would be a coach on The Voice, replacing Blake Shelton. She has served as a coach since its twenty-fourth season.[170]
On September 20, 2023, McEntire reunited with Sofie Dossi where they collaborated during a result show on season 18 of America's Got Talent where McEntire sang "Can't Even Get the Blues" while Dossi did her contortion, hand-balancing, and aerial performances.[171]
In January 2024, it was announced that McEntire was creating a new comedy for NBC.[172]
Musical styles and legacy[edit]
McEntire's sound has been influenced by the country music of Bob Wills, Merle Haggard, Dolly Parton, Barbara Mandrell, and Patsy Cline.[173] In college, McEntire attended local dances at the Oklahoma–Texas border so she could dance to Wills's music, commenting that, "it didn't get any better than dancing to Bob Wills music". She also explained Merle Haggard's influence on her career, stating "I had every album he ever put out", and would sing "every song he did", along with her brother, Pake and sister, Susie. In addition, her first major hit, "Sweet Dreams" was a remake of Patsy Cline's version of the song, according to McEntire herself.[174]
McEntire's music has been described not only to be built upon traditional country music, but also expand into the genres of country pop, mainstream pop, soul, and R&B. At times, her music has been criticized for moving away from traditional country music. Many music critics have called her music to be "melodramatic", "formulaic", and "bombastic", particularly after her 1988 album Reba. Studio releases such as Sweet Sixteen, Rumor Has It, It's Your Call, and Starting Over have been described by these terms.[32]
McEntire possesses a contralto vocal range[175] and performs "vocal gymnastics" with her voice,[176] a musical technique in which a singer twirls a note around, using their vibrato. McEntire has credited Dolly Parton for influencing this trait, stating that she always listened to Parton's records and find her style of vocal gymnastics "so pretty".[153]
McEntire has often been regarded as one of country music's most influential female vocalists and most beloved entertainers.[32][173] She is highly credited for remaining one of country's most popular female artists for nearly four decades, maintaining her success by continually incorporating contemporary musical sounds without changing her traditional vocal style.[121][173] For numerous artists, she has been credited as an inspiration to their careers in music.[173] The Net Music Countdown second-handedly reported, "That influence has manifested itself in many ways. As a role model, she's shown others how to handle fame with grace and good humor while never backing down from her values or goals. Just as importantly, she's shown others to refuse to accept limitations on what she can do or how much she can achieve." McEntire also explained to the online website, "Whatever I'm doing, I feel like I'm representing country music". "It's always been my main career, and it's where my loyalties lie. I feel like I'm waving the flag of country music wherever I go, and I couldn't be prouder to do it."[177]