Reba McEntire is opening up about her close friendship with Dolly Parton, who passed away last month. The two country music superstars were also big fans of each other, even if their schedules kept them from getting together as much as they would have liked.
“We didn’t talk as much as I would have liked to—it was hard to stay in touch like that when we were both always working so hard!’ McEntire tells Vogue. “Dolly communicated mostly via fax. I asked Kenny Rogers one time if he had Dolly’s phone number, and even he didn’t have it. Our catch-ups usually happened when we worked together, which thankfully was a lot over the years. We’d talk about our families and friends that we shared. I cherish those memories.”
Reba McEntire Recalls Her First Meeting With Dolly Parton
Dolly Parton’s debut Hello, I’m Dolly record came out in 1967, ten years before McEntire’s eponymous freshman album. Before McEntire was a friend of Parton’s, she was a big, big fan.
“The first time I was in her presence, it was September 17, 1977,” McEntire remembers. “I was making my Grand Ole Opry debut and was supposed to sing two songs that night. They came to me and said one of my songs was going to have to be cut because Dolly Parton had just walked in the back door. I said, ‘Heck, you can have both of them if I can just meet Dolly!’ I will never forget her walking through in this beautiful black chiffon outfit with rhinestone butterflies. She looked just like an angel!”
How Reba McEntire Honored Dolly Parton at the 2026 Emmy Awards
McEntire honored Parton by performing “Appalachian Memories” at the 2026 Emmy Awards. It’s a song on Parton’s 1983 Burlap & Satin project.
“It’s always been one of my favorite Dolly songs,” McEntire says. “She wrote it about her family and I think it’s just so beautiful and perfect to honor who she was and where she came from. She always carried her upbringing with her, and I admired that. There will never be another Dolly Parton.”
Although it may not be as well known as some of Parton’s other hits, “Appalachian Memories” felt to McEntire like the perfect way to honor the country music icon. She also wore a white gown as a nod to Parton.
“When Dolly did her first TV special, Live in London, in 1983, she wore a white fringed gown, and that’s where she first sang ‘Appalachian Memories,'” McEntire explains. “So my white gown is a little nod to that moment.”
McEntire also got to wear a bit of Parton for her special performance, a once-in-a-lifetime experience for the Oklahoma native.
“My manager, Justin McIntosh, surprised me by asking Dolly’s niece, Rebecca, if they would loan some of Dolly’s jewelry for me to wear,” McEntire says. “They graciously said yes, and it was an honor to have a little piece of her on stage with me. I picked a pair of rhinestone earrings and a butterfly ring. There’s nothing that says Dolly more than rhinestones and butterflies!”
Photo Credit: Courtesy of NBC