When an artist first breaks into the music industry, it can sometimes feel like the only people really supporting you are your parents, but a sweet moment between Trisha Yearwood and Reba McEntire proved that these fresh-faced artists have more support than they might think. The fellow country stars first met in the early 1990s when Yearwood was bursting onto the scene with her chart-topping hit, “She’s in Love with the Boy” from her 1991 eponymous debut.
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The small act of kindness on McEntire’s part quickly developed into a decades-long friendship that the pair discussed during Yearwood’s Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony in March 2025.
The Sweet Gift Reba McEntire Bought For Trisha Yearwood
If putting all your hopes and dreams into a debut album isn’t scary enough for a new artist, attending your first award show certainly makes up for it. Walking into a room full of old friends and colleagues as a fresh-faced newbie is a nerve-wracking experience for anyone, and in the early 1990s, Trisha Yearwood was no exception. While speaking at her Hollywood Walk of Fame star-laying ceremony in March 2025, Yearwood revealed the small act of kindness Reba McEntire gave Yearwood to welcome her into the community.
Calling McEntire “the first artist that was so kind to me,” Yearwood said, “She sent me flowers at my first award show when no one even knew I was in the dressing room. I thought they were from my mom and dad. Then, I saw that they were from Reba, and I’m like, ‘Oh, okay.’ I am so blessed that you and I have become more than just colleagues that get to see each other but friends that get to hang out. “We’re all cheering for each other and with each other.”
McEntire, who was also at the Walk of Fame ceremony, echoed Yearwood’s sentiments. “After the award show, we went to the party, and I came by and sat with you and your mom. I sat there with you, and I thought, ‘I love her already. She’s sitting with her mom.’ My mom and I were real close, just like you and your mom, and your dry wit sense of humor won my heart.”
Turning A Meaningful Friendship Into Successful Musical Collaborations
The friendship between Reba McEntire and Trisha Yearwood has resulted in countless musical collaborations that prove the country stars work together as duet partners just as well as they work together as pals. From McEntire’s 1995 track “On My Own,” which featured Yearwood, Martina McBride, and Linda Davis, to her 2017 collab with Yearwood and Kelly Clarkson on “Softly and Tenderly,” the long-time friends have been performing together for decades.
“Our friendship throughout the years means the world to me because girls out on the road need a buddy,” McEntire said during the 2025 Walk of Fame ceremony. “We are in the country music business where girls stick together, we have fun together, we complain and gripe to each other because you can’t do that with anybody else. Nobody else understands. I love you with all my heart.”
Photo by Michael Buckner/Variety via Getty Images
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