Reba McEntire Has Had Quite The Hair Transformation

With more than 50 years in the business of singing country music, Reba McEntire was bound to undergo some changes. She used to be just a singer, but then she debuted some pretty decent acting chops, starring in two of her own series, "Reba" and "Happy's Place." She used to just sing on stage when she was giving a concert, but then she became a Broadway star starring in the musical "Annie Get Your Gun." She used to be focused on her own singing, but then she became a mentor on "The Voice." And, way back in 1974, she used to be a relative unknown, singing national anthems at local rodeos, until she was discovered and signed to a record label in Nashville.

Along the way, McEntire has won a lot of fans and a lot of awards, including multiple Grammys, Country Music Association awards, and Academy Of Country Music awards. She also nabbed an induction into the Country Music Hall of Fame; and a Kennedy Center Honor — not to mention over 20 number-one hits on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. 

The "Fancy" singer has also had more than her fair share of mane changes. She's been faithful to her trademark red hue (in varying shades ranging from strawberry to orange to auburn), but the silhouette itself has gone through numerous lengths, heights, textures, and styles. 

The year was 1976, and Reba McEntire was just starting out on her path to fame as a country music singer, which would eventually result in over 56 million albums sold throughout the world. The Oklahoma native turned 21 that year and was signed to her first record deal in Nashville. Her naturally red tresses took center stage in one of her first promo photos from the time.

Her locks fell below shoulder level, with the required layers of the era snipped in around her face. She would eventually add bangs into her mane mix where they would become a signature look, but at this point, any fringe pieces were curled away from the face. There was some crown volume on either side of her center part, but for the most part, the look was kept contained.

A curling iron was a big part of most women's beauty arsenals back then and was most likely used to craft McEntire's soft curls. Ringlets were left in smooth formation, only slightly teased away from the face in a nod to the feathered-hair era that was just beginning to take hold, courtesy of Farrah Fawcett and "Charlie's Angels," which premiered that same year.

When Reba McEntire attended the Academy Awards in March 1991, she did it just days after members of her band died in a plane crash. She was scheduled to perform a song in the show and kept her promise as a way to honor her friends. Dressed in a glittering gown and bright pink lipstick, she had a head of hair that took up its own square footage of the red carpet. But as McEntire once told her Facebook fans, "Big hair & sparkles never go out of style!"

The "Big Sky" star wore her collarbone-kissing lengths in a mess of spiral curls that were teased up and out — even her bangs were twirled into curvy C shapes. The silhouette was Hollywood's version of the big manes worn by hair bands of the mid to late '80s, like Van Halen, Poison, and Whitesnake, and in fact, McEntire competed with Jon Bon Jovi himself on the red carpet for who wore it higher. And we can only imagine how many cans of hairspray were called into duty that night.

McEntire has her own set of natural curls, but true to the era, she indulged in a perm to add even more texture, something she regretted almost instantly. "It was just super tight, because if you add a perm to natural curly hair, it looks angry," she told Glamour. "And it did."

In the late '90s, Reba McEntire wanted to try something different with her hair — going short. But it wasn't as easy as just picking up the scissors on a whim. "I had to talk to my management and my stylist who did my hair," she told Glamour. "It took almost a year for me to talk them into letting me cut my hair. They told me my hair was my image." In fact, her team forced her to wear a wig for months until they were ready to make the big reveal.

The star wound up completely smitten with her decision. "It was freedom," McEntire declared about going short. "I loved it." So much so, that she returned to it, donning a cute pixie snip with longer crown layers in September 2021 for an event with Macy's and American Express. Even with the shorter length, she was still able to infuse some of her beloved crown height into the crown. For the piecey, textured finish that was all the rage at the time, her tiny layers were flipped out all around the sides — a look easily achieved with a flat iron and a bit of pomade.

Most of McEntire's short-tress looks can be seen on her sitcom "Reba," which ran from 2001-2007. The star began the series with an abbreviated snip, then slowly grew out the length as the show was renewed from season to season.

Reba McEntire isn't the kind of gal who goes for the sleek look. In a throwback photo posted to Instagram, she shared an outtake from a photo shoot where her hair was slicked back in a very un-fluffy style. "I didn't like my hair that flat," she noted. "This gal likes VOLUME." When she was presented with the Milestone Award in April 2015 at the 50th Academy of Country Music Awards, for winning the most Female Vocalist of the Year awards, she showed it is possible to have a smooth look that also has fizz.

The "I'm a Survivor" singer wore her locks several inches below her shoulders, without even one tiny curl in sight. The layers of her cut were smoothed into submission, with just a hint of a flip on the ends — most likely achieved with a large round brush and a blow-dryer, and possibly a quick run-through with a flat iron. At the top of the head, tresses were puffed up into a crown of volume.

Adding even more oomph to the finished silhouette, McEntire's bangs were lifted up with a gentle curve that rested well beyond the surface of her forehead. 

Reba McEntire started her career in curls, and in October 2024, when she attended the NBC Fall Comedy Celebration, she seemed to have returned to her '70s vibe, updated to a fresher, modern silhouette. Her appearances on "The Voice" and "Happy's Place" also showed she's more of a texture kind of gal than anything else.

On the red carpet with the yellow background, McEntire's scarlet tresses stood out not only for their warm hue but for the curvy silhouette (can you imagine what McEntire would look like without her signature red hair? The List did!) Spilling over the sequins of her shoulder pads, the star's locks waved hello in relaxed curls still holding on to some of their definition. Given the depth of the tendrils, the ringlets might have been created with a large-barrel curling iron, before having a light comb-through and a thorough fluff.

Her feathery bangs started way at the top of the crown, topped off with more of McEntire's beloved volume. For admirers of her hair, she once shared the secret to achieving a Reba-like mane. "If you want to get one of my signature looks, pull out your comb and get to teasing," she wrote on Instagram.