Country music legend and fan-favorite Reba McEntire is officially returning as a coach for The Voice Season 28. She’ll be joining Niall Horan, Snoop Dogg, and Michael Bublé in the spinning red chairs—but Reba recently revealed that she almost never joined the show at all.
During a candid interview on Late Night with Seth Meyers on May 13, McEntire opened up about her initial hesitation to become a coach on the hit competition series.
“I was really dreading it at first because I don’t want to tell anybody they suck,” Reba confessed with a laugh. “I passed on it years ago when it first came over from Holland, and I said, ‘I can’t tell somebody, you know, don’t give up your day job.’ I’m not gonna do that!”
Despite her initial reluctance, Reba has found her place on The Voice—not as a harsh critic, but as a compassionate mentor.
“The way we did it on the first time I was on The Voice, it was more helpful and encouraging,” she said. “Everybody that’s coming back now—Snoop, Michael, myself, and Niall—we’re nice people. We encourage. We lift up.”
Reba’s coaching style has resonated with viewers, making her one of the most beloved personalities on the show. Her warm, no-nonsense approach, combined with her decades of industry experience, has made her a trusted guide for aspiring artists.
While discussing her return to The Voice, McEntire also shared a few lighthearted moments about her personal life—particularly working with her longtime partner Rex Linn on their upcoming sitcom Happy’s Place.
“He is probably the sane one in the group,” she joked. “On the Reba show, I was the voice of reason, and now he is. So, I get to be in the whirlwind of chaotic stuff. I love it. I love being the crazy one now.”
She added that Linn is a serious actor who takes rehearsal very seriously. “He’s a stickler on rehearsals. He’s a good guy. I like him a lot,” she said with a smile.
And Reba isn’t the only country icon who’s turned down The Voice. Fellow legend Dolly Parton also shared that she’s repeatedly declined invitations to join as a full-time coach.
In a recent May 2025 interview with E! News, Parton explained, “I’ve been asked to do that a lot of times. It’s too hard for me. That’s why I don’t accept it, because I know how sincere everybody is.”
“Even if they’re not that good, they believe they are,” Parton continued. “And I just can’t hurt people.”
While Parton has appeared as a guest mentor on the show, she’s made it clear that handing out criticism just isn’t in her nature.
As Season 28 approaches, fans can look forward to Reba’s return—bringing heart, wisdom, and a whole lot of country charm to the competition. And for McEntire, what once seemed like a daunting role has become a platform for encouragement, connection, and showcasing the power of kindness in a cutthroat industry.
