Reba McEntire And Dolly Parton Might Not Be As Close As They Seem

Dolly Parton and Reba McEntire are the biggest queens of country music. McEntire and Parton share decades of friendship and music creation between them. But McEntire has made a confession that proves the two may not be as chummy as they appear. While the ladies often talk and spend time together, McEntire admitted on "Andy Cohen Live" that she has never met Parton's husband of nearly 60 years, Carl Dean. Dean has rarely been seen in public with his superstar wife, but fans were shocked to learn that even a close friend of Parton's has been kept in the dark about her longtime love.

This wasn't the only surprising confession from McEntire's interview — she also revealed that she has never been invited to Parton's household. When asked if McEntire has ever tried Parton's cooking, the famous redhead had to deny once again. This could have to do with Parton's old-fashioned, and somewhat private, lifestyle. In a 2023 episode of "Watch What Happens Live," McEntire told the world that Parton is hard to get in touch with because she primarily communicates via fax machine, and this curiosity is known throughout the country music world. "I don't have her telephone number, and I asked Kenny Rogers one time," McEntire recalled. "I said, 'Do you have Dolly's number?' He said, 'No.'" Even Parton's goddaughter, Miley Cyrus, needs a fax machine for their conversations. "She does a fax, and then someone scans the fax, and then they put it into a text message, and then that gets sent to me," Cyrus explained during an appearance on "Late Night with Seth Meyers." 

Dolly Parton and Reba McEntire's friendship spans more than 40 years. The two shared the screen together when Parton made a memorable appearance on McEntire's self-titled sitcom in 2005. And they joined voices in a 2021 duet when Parton joined the redhead on her song "Does He Love You." Upon the duet's release, McEntire admitted that she was unhappy it took so long for the pals to collaborate on a song together. "I'm shell-shocked," McEntire said in an interview with Billboard. "How have we not done one? Every time I'd hear Dolly doing a duet with somebody else, I would get a little sad or a little jealous, like, 'I want to do a duet with Dolly.' Everything happens for a reason and timing is everything. So, it worked out perfectly."

The two have also confided in each other during times of heartbreak. In 1991, most of McEntire's band was tragically killed in a plane crash. While McEntire found it hard to go on following the accident, she had people depending on her and knew she would have to keep performing live. While speaking with Sunday World, she remembered how her friend Parton showed support, offering, "you can take my band until you get your band together." In 2020, Parton guested on McEntire's podcast and paid tribute to their famous friendship on Instagram, writing, "With a friendship that's lasted over 40 years, [Reba] and I always have a lot to talk about! I am honored to be a guest on her brand new podcast 'Living & Learning with Reba McEntire.'"