Reba McEntire Wasn't Keen On Meeting Her Country 'Hero' Merle Haggard

Over the course of her own legendary career in country music, Reba McEntire has made friends with everybody from Dolly Parton to the late Toby Keith, with whom McEntire remained close until his death. The Grammy winner has even built bonds with musicians from outside the country sphere, such as McEntire's fellow "Voice" star Chance the Rapper. However, there is one country music icon that she very much did not want to meet. Not because the "Just a Little Love" hitmaker didn't like or respect them, mind you. Quite the opposite, in fact. If you've never heard the phrase "never meet your heroes," it basically means that sometimes, directly encountering someone you've long admired can be a disappointing experience, as there's a good chance they won't live up to your expectations.

And that's precisely what McEntire feared would happen the first time she met her own country music "hero," Merle Haggard. "I never wanted to meet my heroes, because I didn't want them to disappoint me — ever," the Grammy winner explained on "The Voice" (via Instagram) in September 2024. "I was doing shows with Merle Haggard, and I did not want to meet him, because I didn't want to be disappointed, because I looked up to him for so long," she elaborated. Of course, the two came face to face eventually, and fortunately, McEntire quickly realized that she had absolutely nothing to worry about. As the "How Blue" hitmaker recalled, "He was the nicest, most cordial gentleman. [...] I was like, 'Phew!'"

During her anecdote about Merle Haggard on "The Voice," Reba McEntire also discussed some of her other idols that she's had the pleasure of meeting in her career — namely, Loretta Lynn, Tammy Wynette, Barbara Mandrell, and the aforementioned Dolly Parton. The country star has even had the opportunity to collaborate with some of her heroes too, like when she recorded guest vocals on Lynn's 2021 track "Still Woman Enough" or re-recorded her 1993 track "Does He Love You" with Parton in 2021. McEntire also shared the stage with Mandrell. 

However, while she did open for him at live shows early in her career, the Grammy winner never directly collaborated with Haggard in the same way. That being said, she has still paid tribute to him in various ways over the years. For example, McEntire has long been known to perform Haggard's famous 1968 song "Mama Tried" at her own concerts. And although she has yet to put out an official, studio-recorded cover of it, one of the beloved singer-songwriter's live renditions was included on the country icon's 1989 live album, fittingly entitled "Reba Live." 

Singing Haggard's praises on the live recording, McEntire gushed, "I had every album he ever put out. My older brother, Pake, and my little sister, Susie, and me, we sang every song he did," (via YouTube). Additionally, the "Only In My Mind" hitmaker covered Haggard's 1969 hit "Okie From Muskogee" to open the 60th Academy of Country Music Awards in 2025. The performance was a tribute to the legendary country star, who passed away in 2016, at the age of 79.