Reba McEntire, now 69, grew up far from glamour. Born in 1955 in Oklahoma, she was raised on her family’s 8,000-acre ranch in tiny Chockie. From a young age, Reba was expected to work just like everyone else. By age five, she was steering her father’s truck through cattle fields. Her family was deeply rooted in rodeo life—her grandfather was a world-champion steer roper, and her father won the title three times. But Clark McEntire was strict and rarely showed affection, something Reba admitted she longed for growing up.
The McEntire children lived modestly in a small house with one bathroom, but music filled their home thanks to their mother, Jacqueline, who once dreamed of becoming a singer. She taught Reba and her siblings to harmonize during long car rides to rodeos, sparking Reba’s passion. Reba joined school performances early, and by high school, she formed The Singing McEntires with her brother and sister.
