When did Reba McEntire and Rex Linn start dating? All about the couple as they announce their engagement at Emmys 2025

Reba McEntire recently announced her engagement to actor Rex Linn, whom she has been dating since 2020. The news of the couple's engagement was first reported by Entertainment Online, with the interviewer referring to them as "financés" during their red carpet interview for the 2025 Emmy Awards.

Reba McEntire has been married twice before, whereas Rex Linn has never been married before. The I'm a Survivor singer was first married to wrestling champion Charlie Battles. The former couple tied the knot in 1976 and were together for eleven years until their divorce in 1987. The couple had no children.

Two years later, she married Narvel Blackstock, who also served as her manager. The couple tied the knot in 1989, but later divorced in 2015. Talking about her relationship with Blackstock, with whom she welcomed a son, Reba McEntire said:

"[Ours 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. 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."

More about Reba McEntire's relationship with Rex Linn, as her engagement to actor Rex Linn is announced at the 2025 Emmy Awards

Reba McEntire and Rex Linn have known each other for a long time. According to People Magazine, the couple first met back in 1991 on the set of the movie The Gambler Returns: The Luck of the Draw. Although they did not begin a relationship at that time, they kept in contact and remained friends throughout the years.

The couple later connected on the show Young Sheldon, where Rex Linn played the recurring character of Principal Tom Peterson, and McEntire made guest appearances on the show. In her November 2020 appearance on Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen, Reba McEntire revealed details about their then newly blossoming relationship and said:

"We kept in contact over the years, we both know the same people. So it was just like good friends getting back together and having dinner. Then we started texting and talking on the telephone and getting to know each other better during the quarantine."

The couple became close during the pandemic and soon started dating. In an October 2021 interview with Today, McEntire revealed that it was in March 2020 that the couple grew really close to each other and have become inseparable since then. She said:

"In 2020, when Mama got sick..We'd gotten to see each other before because we're both on Young Sheldon. So starting in March of 2020, we just kept talking and visiting and finally got together, see each other in June. And we've been pretty much inseparable ever since."

Rex Linn, who affectionately calls Reba McEntire "tater tots," also previously opened up about his relationship with the Fancy singer, saying:

"We are best friends. We wanna cross the finish line with each other in a relationship."

The couple made their first red carpet appearance in November 2020 at the CMA Awards, and since then, have been spotted at numerous events together. Their engagement was confirmed to People Magazine by a source close to the couple, who said:

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"It happened a few months ago and they are very happy."

Reba McEntire had also previously shared how each day feels like Valentine's Day for the couple, adding that they perfectly bond together over their shared interests.

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