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Reba McEntire doesnt have much time to herself these days.
NBCUniversal/JSquared Photography
And thats why McEntire is ready to come clean.
My favorite place to just be by myself is on the toilet, she says in complete seriousness.
Nobody can reach you, nobodys going to bother you, she continues of her love for the bathroom.
Rex Linn and Reba McEntire attend the Super Bowl LVIII pregame at Allegiant Stadium on February 11, 2024, in Las Vegas.
But it works every time.
Plus, its not justThe VoiceandHappys Placethat the 69-year-old Grammy winner has on her mind.
Truthfully, she deserves to stay in the bathroom as long as she damn well likes.
JoAnna Garcia Swisher and Reba McEntire inReba
We had to do two episodes last week, which was tough on everybody.
But we did it.
I was so proud of everybody.
Belissa Escobedo as Isabella, Reba McEntire as Bobbie inHappy’s Place
Its no surprise, though.
Im very blessed to be able to have gotten to spend time with strong women.
Thats why I gravitate to people like Dolly Parton.
Reba McEntire and Dolly Parton at the 2011 Country Music Hall of Fame Medallion Ceremonies in Nashville
I want to continue to learn.
These days, though, shes teaching us.
Reba McEntire:Yeah, its fun.
The McEntire siblings. July 1956.
I knew it would be a successful song because its so relatable.
Youre a survivor, and its a pep talk song.
Well, youre an icon, hence this interview.
Courtesy of Reba McEntire
What does that mean to you?
I dont consider myself an icon.
I feel like Im a blessed person who has more friends than I used to.
Thats the way I like it.
I dont want to be something that people look up to or idolize.
I just want to be a better friend.
Im a hands-on person.
I do like to do my own grocery shopping.
I love to go grocery shopping, especially this time of year with all the pumpkin spice stuff out.
I keep in touch with my family, my friends back in Tennessee.
And Im a normal person.
I love to stay outside.
I love to watch our birds.
At one point we had 50 hummingbirds outside the house.
Im a normal person.
With all that youve accomplished, does anything make you nervous?
The only time I do get nervous is when Im not prepared.
If I dont know my song or my material, then that gives me anxiety.
And before we go to sleep at night, were running lines.
Were big sticklers on being prepared.
And if youre prepared, you could play with the scene.
You owe your relationship with Rex toYoung Sheldon, right?
[Linn had a recurring role on the series when McEntire first was a guest star.]
Rex and I knew each other in 1991 when I was doingThe Gamblermovie with Kenny Rogers.
We met then and would see each other throughout the years.
I couldnt get close enough to Rex when we had dinner January of 2020.
Id seen him like the April before, just friends.
Everything happens for a reason.
Would you say the secret to a successful relationship is becoming friends first?
It really helps, I do think.
Young Sheldonwas always a hit, but then it exploded when it started streaming on Netflix.
What has that been like?
Its a good conversation to get to talk about two different shows.
And then youve gotHappys Place.
Im very grateful Im getting to do TV.
I always have loved TV.
JoAnna Garcia Swisher and Reba McEntire inReba
Theres a lot of heart inHappys Place.
Same as withYoung SheldonandReba.
And so I said, I want that on every episode.
And theyve done it.
Yeah, and Ill give them an example of a way I boo-booed.
Like, Dont do that with your money.
Or, Get you a good financial business manager.
So hopefully I can pass that on and help them out.
What did you learn from that experience?
The gentleman was like, Nope, shes not on the list.
Daddy said, Well, feller, what do you think we ought to do?
And he said, I guess you ought to go home.
He said, Well, its 700 miles home.
And they said, You go back over there.
Well have that taken care of.
And nobody panicked, nobody got upset.
Dolly just pulled up in the parking lot in her bus.
And I said, Oh my gosh, can I meet her?
She can have both my songs, I just want to look at her.
And she walked in front of me in this beautiful black chiffon pantsuit with rhinestone butterflies all over.
And I thought, Wow, thats what an angel looks like.
I was thrilled to death to be there.
Yeah, everything works out the way its supposed to.
Just dont panic, dont freak out, and kind of sit back to see where it leads.
What did Dolly say when you told her this story for the first time?
I dont think I ever told her.
No, because when Ive got time with Dolly, I want her to talk.
I dont want to talk.
Im going to learn from her.
Shes done more than Ive ever done.
Shes got such knowledge and I just want to pick that.
I want to learn from her more and more.
Well, she is an angel.
And community and family mean so much to her.
Shes done so much for the area she grew up in.
Everybody can learn from Dolly.
You hear people say, One day at a time, or Take it minute by minute.
Never, never ever could I do that.
I mean, I always had my planner with me.
I was never in the moment.
I remember when I said, I really want to be in the moment.
I just want to be.
I ask young people, when theyre getting in this business, Are you having fun?
Theyll say, Well, Im just so busy.
So to that I say: Write it down because you wont remember it.
Youre going so fast right now.
take a stab at stay in the moment and relish it.
Dont just attempt to blow past it.
Theres so much pressure.
The big thing is, everybodys so worried about what everybody else is thinking about you.
You think about you.
Are you happy with you?
Thats all that matters.
Dont worry about what everybody else thinks about you.
Youre wasting time and energy.
Because theyre only looking at themselves.
They dont care what youre wearing.
Get through all that BS.
You feel good in your skin, now go have fun.
What do you think growing up in Oklahoma did to help you succeed in this industry?
Oh, work ethic.
We grew up on an 8,000-acre cattle ranch, so everybody piled in and helped.
It was a family operation.
Will Mackenzie, my director onReba, said I was the most directable person hed ever worked with.
I said, Tell Clark McEntire that.
Thats why, because you took direction.
We didnt even get a chance to ask questions [on the ranch].
It was go, go do it.
And so you took directions, you paid attention.
So all of that I brought with me into the workplace.
Pay attention, be respectable.
Be respectable to your elders, to the people youre working for and with be respectable of their time.
Be considerate of other people.
Youre not just this glamorous country music star and entertainer.
You love getting your hands dirty; you love playing sports.
Youve helped redefine what it means to be a woman before it was cool to do all these things.
A woman is a very strong individual.
Its amazing the fortitude and aptitude a female has.
I highly respect them.
And Im very proud to be a female, a working woman in todays society.
Theres so much we can do.
Im very blessed to be able to have gotten to spend time with strong women.
Thats why I gravitate to people like Dolly Parton.
I want to continue to learn.
I have a few rapid-fire questions for you.
One, what is something you will never spend money on?
Money and me have a very strange relationship.
I love to make it.
And I dont worry about money.
I didnt when I didnt have it either.
Money is a necessity, but its also very nice to have and spend it.
Im a shopaholic on Amazon, so Id say Ill never spend a lot of money on jewelry.
Ill buy and wear fake costume jewelry, but not real [jewelry].
What is something youve learned to spend money on?
Flying private is the best perk that I can give myself.
I dont mind that at all.
Ill work three or four extra jobs so I can fly private.
I just get to rest.
I can do more on both ends.
Do you have any hair regrets?
In the early 80s I got a perm.
I have natural curly hair.
How did you feel then when you cut it all off in the 90s?
It was in 96 or 97 when I cut my hair off, and it was freeing.
But you know what?
They told me my hair was my image.
You got your big hair all jacked up to Jesus.
You cant cut your hair off.
And I said, Well, itll give you something else to talk about.
And they said, Oh, okay.
Is there something you havent done yet that youd really like the chance to do?
Well, we were talking about earlier doing a game show.
Im petrified at that.
I dont think I could do that.
But I would really like to be in a movie where I play one of the Marvel Comic characters.
What do you think?
I mean, I would watch you grocery shop.
Can you get through the supermarket without being stopped?
And I enjoy that.
Theyll go, What you doing in here grocery shopping?
I say, I love it.
And then well start talking about what theyve got in their carts.
Like, How come you got that kind of brand of peanut butter instead of…?
Ill take pictures and its fun.
I want to do a social media video series of us going grocery shopping now.
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