Reba McEntire Felt Like Her Marriage to Narvel Blackstock Was ‘Always’ About ‘Business’

Reba McEntire is currently in a blissful relationship with her boyfriend, Rex Linn, but things weren’t always so peachy in her love life. The “Fancy” singer recently opened up about her marriage to ex-husband Narvel Blackstock, saying it was “a situation that was always business.”

“I think it works for some people. They can be married or have a relationship and work together. Our work was all the time,” Reba, 68, said during an appearance on The Drew Barrymore Show on March 1. “Our marriage was 26 years. We started out working together in the band. He was part of the band, and then became my manager, later on then my husband, but it was a situation that was always business — whether we were getting ready in the morning, pillow talk, whatever, but it was business.”

Reba and Narvel got married in 1989, nine years after he joined her band. They welcomed one child together, son Shelby Blackstock, in 1990. The former couple later split, and their divorce was finalized in 2015 after 26 years of marriage.

“Even when we were on vacation to recharge the batteries, about three days into a vacation it was like, ‘You know what we can do?’” she continued on about their marriage.

The Reba actress moved on with boyfriend Rex, 67, in 2020. The pair have been going strong ever since. The unbreakable foundation of their relationship is largely thanks to three decades of friendship after meeting on the set of 1991’s The Gambler Returns: The Luck of the Draw.

“We were all going to go out and have dinner. Melissa [Peterman] says that that was our first date, because, I mean, I was like a magnet to Rex. I just couldn’t get close enough to him,” Reba said of her decision to pursue a romantic relationship with the actor. “I don’t know why. We had talked and communicated throughout the years, had a mutual friend, Ed Gaylord, and we stayed in contact. But for some reason, that night was just so special.”

Reba, Rex and Narvel, 67, were all in attendance at Shelby’s wedding at Orlando’s Walt Disney World in February 2022.

“Everyone was in close proximity, but it felt like a happy family event,” an insider told Closer in March 2022. “Nobody created any awkwardness.”

There’s even been some talk of Reba and Rex potentially walking down the aisle in the future.

“They are so happy and such a unit now,” the source continued. “Reba is a hopeless romantic and loves being married, so I think it’s just a matter of time.”