Reba McEntire just recently announced that she would be releasing a new lifestyle book titled “Not That Fancy” that will also be accompanied by an album by the same name featuring stripped down versions of some of her most famous songs.
Hell yes.
Of course, when an artist announces a project like this one, they have to go on a media tour for it, and Reba stopped by the Today Show yesterday (sorry if that’s confusing) to discuss her new book and album.
She revealed some sneak peaks into the book, sharing some small words of wisdom and a couple of cocktail recipes, but the biggest revelation came when Carson Daly asked about McEntire’s mother, Jacqueline McEntire.
Jacqueline passed away back in 2020 at the age of 93 following a battle with cancer. Though Reba stated that her mom had lived a full life, it was still a tough time of mourning for the country music star, as it is with anyone who loses a loved one.
In the sit down interview with Carson Daly on the “Hoda & Jenna” portion of the Today Show, McEntire opened up about her relationship with her mother and how big of a role she had when it came time for Reba to chase her country music dream.
Carson Daly first asked:
“Your mom wanted to be a country singer and taught you and your siblings how to sing. Of course, three out of four of you would go on to sing.
What was that like for her to see her dream come true through her kids?”
Reba responded by saying:
“Well she was as nervous as we were.
When we got on stage, she would hold somebody’s hand and squeeze it so hard, and it was so nerve-racking for her.
But she was channeling all her energy to us and she would mouth every word we sang.”
As any proud parent would do, Reba’s mom supported her kids with all of her heart, but that didn’t stop her from being worried for them. A singer herself, she knew how much courage it took for her kids to step up on stage.
Carson Daly then asks Reba if she thought her mom was living vicariously through her kids, to which Reba responded:
“Yeah, because she didn’t get to go do what she wanted to do, and that’s what she said to me when I was first going to Nashville.
I was dreading it, and she said ‘If you don’t want to do this, let’s just go on home. But if we go on to Nashville, I’ll be living out all my dreams through you.’
And then I said ‘Well shoot, why didn’t you say that in the beginning?'”
Sounds like Reba needed one final push from her mom to start her lustrous country music career. Thank God for Jacqueline McEntire, because otherwise the world would have been robbed of one of the best country music artists to ever do it.
The clip from the Today Show can be seen below:
