Reba McEntire Opens Up: “I Was Scared to Death” After Divorce from Narvel Blackstock — How She Found Hope, Healing, and a Second Chance at Love with Rex Linn.LC
In a raw and deeply moving interview with Esquire magazine that has left fans reeling, Reba McEntire – the 70-year-old country music queen and entertainment powerhouse with a career spanning decades of hits and triumphs – has finally bared her soul about the paralyzing terror she endured in the wake of her 2015 divorce from husband and longtime manager Narvel Blackstock, a split she never wanted that shattered her world after 26 years of marriage, leaving her feeling “deserted, abandoned, and utterly alone” as her entire support system vanished overnight, forcing the once-sheltered star to confront a brutal new reality where she had to learn everything from scratch.
Reba and Narvel, who tied the knot in 1989 after he joined her band and rose to become her indispensable manager, built an entertainment empire together, sharing a son Shelby born in 1990, while Narvel brought three children from his previous marriage, including the late Brandon Blackstock – who was wed to singer Kelly Clarkson until 2022 and tragically passed away in August this year after a three-year secret battle with cancer, a loss that hit Reba hard since she always viewed Brandon as “her own blood” even post-divorce. Reba recounted how her life pre-split was a cocoon of security: “My manager was my husband from 1989 to 2015. Everybody took care of everything.
All I had to do was get up and sing,” but when it all crumbled, her whole team followed Narvel out the door, plunging her into “scared to death” panic that erupted into “I threw a fit,” a visceral outburst from a woman accustomed to stability but now fumbling basics like the price of a gallon of milk, and she confessed on CMT Radio Live a year later that “the divorce was not my idea. I didn’t want it in any shape, form or fashion. So it was really hard to make the adjustment.” Though billed as amicable with a joint statement affirming they “continue to support each other [as] they have worked together for 35 years and will continue to do so,” Narvel walked away with a staggering $47.5 million settlement that stunned Reba and thrust her into solo financial navigation, but she was buoyed by her “angels” – loyal friends and colleagues – who rallied with tough love: “Hey, you’re learning. You didn’t know how much a gallon of milk was, now you do. Now get out there. You can do it. You’re tough. We taught you better.” Diving deeper on The Drew Barrymore Show in 2024, Reba unpacked the marriage’s core flaw: their bond was “always business-dominated,” starting in the band where Narvel evolved from musician to manager to spouse, but “work was all the time,” infiltrating even intimate moments like morning prep, pillow talk, or vacations – by day three of a getaway, it was inevitably “You know what we can do?” turning relaxation into opportunity scouting, a relentless grind that eroded romance over 26 years and made blending love and labor a recipe for burnout.
Post-divorce, Reba rediscovered joy with Happy’s Place co-star Rex Linn, a friend since the ’90s who stepped up during her mother’s illness, sparking their 2020 romance that recently culminated in an engagement, with Rex gushing to WBIR Channel 10, “We are best friends. We wanna cross the finish line with each other in a relationship,” a heartwarming twist proving Reba’s resilience as she juggles fresh ventures like albums and TV gigs, inspiring millions with her tale of turning fear into fortitude no matter the age. Reba’s odyssey isn’t just personal drama; it’s a profound lesson in juggling career and heart, emerging from divorce’s storm stronger, self-reliant, and blissfully in love, leaving admirers misty-eyed at the country icon’s unbreakable spirit.
