Reba McEntire Only Knows 1 Old School Way to Contact Dolly Parton
Reba McEntire and Dolly Parton teamed up for a duet in 2021. And McEntire shared she contacted Parton’s people to arrange that iconic pairing. But she also revealed that “the only way to get ahold of” the country music icon is using a retro method of communication.
How does Parton prefer to receive correspondence about country business? And what else did McEntire say about getting the chance to work with one of her role models?
Reba McEntire wanted to get in contact to sing a duet with Dolly Parton
Despite being friends for decades, McEntire and Parton didn’t record a song together until recent years. And McEntire said it bummed her out a little that they each had sung with so many other people, but they’d never actually recorded together.
So, in 2021, Parton joined McEntire on her album Revived, Remixed, Revisited for an updated version of her ’90s hit. “Does He Love You.”
Prior to that, though, McEntire used a somewhat unique method to reach out to Parton to ask for a duet.
Reba McEntire said Dolly Parton has a system for contacting her
McEntire told Apple Music Country’s Southern Accents Radio she didn’t use a phone to contact Parton about their 2021 duet. “Well, you don’t call Dolly. You fax her,” she explained. “Fax her people and have your people talk to her people.”
She shared, “That’s the only way to get ahold of her.”
According to McEntire, not even Parton’s old pal Kenny Rogers had her phone number. Faxing Parton is a rule that people in the business understand, she said. So, as was proper practice, she had her people send a fax and she asked if Parton wanted to join her for a duet.
Lucky for McEntire and fans, Parton agreed. The “Fancy” singer said she couldn’t stop listening to Parton’s part in the song in the studio.
Dolly Parton is ‘different than anybody’ Reba McEntire’s met
In Reba: My Story, McEntire recounted to the date the first time she ever saw Parton in person. She was debuting on the Grand Ole Opry in 1977 and Parton’s arrival meant her performance was cut from two songs to one. But she said she would have given up both songs for the chance to meet the country music idol.
McEntire also wrote that Parton was one of many country music stars to reach out to her following the plane crash that killed seven members of her band, plus her tour manager and two pilots.
In McEntire’s Southern Accents Radio interview, she gushed about Parton some more, stating the “Jolene” singer is the “biggest-hearted person” she’s ever met. And she added she’s known a lot of big-hearted people. But Parton’s giving nature stands out so much to McEntire, she said she’s like “God’s little sister” and an “angel on earth.”
“Dolly is different than anybody I’ve ever met … in the business or not,” she declared.
