Reba McEntire is already country music royalty, but she is soon extending her reign to primetime television. The 68-year-old posted a new video on social media, complete with a scepter and tiara, ahead of the Season 24 premiere of The Voice.
In the video, McEntire can be seen having some good-natured sparring with Gwen Stefani, John Legend and Niall Horan ahead of the show’s opening night.
Hear ye, hear ye! 👑 I've taken the throne as the newest coach for Season 24 of #TheVoice! Don’t miss the premiere September 25th & 26th on @nbc and streaming on @peacock to catch all the magic. @NBCTheVoice #QueenReba pic.twitter.com/uzarrYygEE
— Reba McEntire (@reba) August 29, 2023
McEntire is filling the spot left vacant by Blake Shelton, who departed the show after last season.
“The country lane — I’m taking over for Blake so I’m gonna represent country music,” McEntire told People. “[He’s got] big boots. I don’t know what size those boots are, but they’re big, so I’m gonna really work hard to make him proud.”
McEntire hints she will have to up her wardrobe game to sit with Stefani on the famous red swivel chairs each week.
“I do understand that I need to go razzle-dazzle with Gwen being on there,” said McEntire. “Gwen’s always got the nicest outfits, so I really need to step up my game on that.”
It was McEntire who was first offered the position before Shelton. She turned it down, but later regretted not taking the position when it was offered to her, before it was given to Shelton.
“It was a very popular show in Holland, I’m pretty sure,” McEntire told Andy Cohen on Watch What Happens Live. “I watched the tape and I said ‘No, I’m going to pass on that, because I don’t think I’d ever be able to tell somebody that they’re terrible, or ‘Go find another job’ or ‘Hope you like your nighttime job.’ I couldn’t do that, day in and day out. I just couldn’t do it. So I did pass on it. Blake was the perfect choice. He’s done a wonderful job.”
McEntire hasn’t even kicked off Season 24, but she’s already signed on for Season 25 as well, joining Legend, Chance the Rapper and newcomers to the show, Dan + Shay, who will have The Voice’s first double-chair seat.
The Country Music Hall of Fame member just dropped “Till You Love Me (Acoustic Version).” The song is from her Not That Fancy album, out on October 6. It’s one of several songs she re-recorded, including “If You See Him, If You See Her” with Brooks & Dunn, “Does He Love You” with Dolly Parton, “Fancy” and more, for her Not That Fancy album.
“It’s songs that I went into the studio with Dave Cobb and re-recorded,” McEntire explained on the Today Show. “And then we’ve got four new songs, songs that we did later, like ‘Georgia,’ the duet with Ronnie and Kix, Brooks & Dunn. It’s great music along with a fun book.”
Season 24 of The Voice begins with two back-to-back episodes on September 25 and 26, on NBC. Pre-order Not That Fancy and find all of her music and upcoming shows at Reba.com.
Read ‘Reba McEntire: 11 Things to Know About the Country Music Legend’ here.
