When country superstar and “The Voice” coach Reba McEntire and actor Rex Linn confirmed their engagement during the Emmys in mid-September 2025, they left out one critical detail: they’ve been engaged since Christmas Eve 2024!
In an interview with People published on October 22, McEntire admitted she and Linn kept their engagement a secret for a touching reason. Though they had planned to tell the world after the holidays, she said the devastating wildfires happened in Los Angeles and “it wasn’t appropriate.” After that, McEntire said, “the time never presented itself until the Emmys when it just happened.”
Rex Linn’s Proposal Was a Total Surprise to Reba McEntire
After dating for five years, McEntire, 70, and Linn, 68, spend a great deal of time together at home and co-starring on their NBC sitcom, “Happy’s Place.” But Linn managed to keep his proposal a secret, and even took the ring on a trip to Africa, but never found the right time to ask the country star to marry him.
“It was his choice,” McEntire told People. We went to Africa last year … and he took the ring, but nothing ever presented itself. So December 24 he did it. He’s very romantic, very romantic. It was up to him totally. I had no idea, it was a total surprise. It was Rex Linn timing.”
“I was totally thrilled to death,” the country legend gushed, revealing that the engagement took place in Leipers Fork, a suburb of Nashville.
“We got engaged, then we were going to make the announcement when we got back to L.A. in January,” McEntire explained, “and the fires happened. And it wasn’t appropriate. So our joy was (tempered) — it was like, ‘Oh my gosh, these people are losing their homes. They’re taken out of their homes. We had to evacuate twice. So that wasn’t the time.”
Reba McEntire’s Unique Ring Helped to Keep the Engagement a Secret
GettyWhile giant diamond rings are typically a signal to media and fans that a celebrity has gotten engaged, McEntire’s unique and understated ring from Linn helped to keep their status a secret.
As outlets including E! News noted, McEntire sported a unique black diamond band at the Emmys — on the red carpet and during her “Golden Girls” tribute — rather than a traditional diamond ring. She wore the same ring during her People interview and can be seen wearing the ring on recent episodes of “The Voice,” which were filmed in July and August.
Natural, black diamonds are rare gems called carbonados, featuring a “distinct and unusual polycrystalline diamond material,” according to the International Gem Society. The organization says they are only found in Brazil and the Central African Republic, but that black diamond engagement rings have been rising in popularity in recent years.
When Will Reba McEntire & Rex Linn Get Married?
Getty For now, there are no plans in the works for a wedding, McEntire told People, explaining that after Linn’s proposal, “I asked him, ‘Well, when do you want to do this?’ He said, ‘Oh … let’s have fun with this engagement time.’ So we haven’t set a date or anything. We’re just enjoying each other.”
The happy couple first met in 1991 while filming the Kenny Rogers movie “The Gambler,” and kept in touch, but didn’t start dating until 2020. The following year, McEntire said on the “TODAY Show” that he called her when her mom got sick.
“So starting in March of 2020, we just kept talking and visiting and finally got together, see each other in June,” she recalled. “And we’ve been pretty much inseparable ever since.”
