Reba McEntire said “a Reba-Rex wedding is going to be very different.”

The legendary country artist and Texas-born actor Rex Linn confirmed their engagement on the red carpet at the 77th Primetime Emmy Awards in September; however, McEntire revealed later that her fiancé actually popped the question nearly a year ago, on Christmas Eve in Tennessee. McEntire said during an interview on TODAY on Monday (December 1) that “a lot of people did not know. …We were gonna announce it when we got back to L.A., but the fires happened and there was not room for our joy in (the) devastating situation that everybody else was in. So, we just waited,” she said, explaining that the Emmys “sounded good to me.

“A Reba-Rex wedding is going to be very different,” McEntire said of her upcoming marriage. “It’s gonna be low key, lots of fun, lots of people, lots of food. Our big motto is ‘have fun.’”

McEntire, 70, and Linn, who recently turned 69, met in the early 1990s on the set of The Gambler Returns: The Luck of the Draw. They reconnected in early 2020 while working on Young Sheldon, and have been dating ever since. Now, they’re also sharing an onscreen romance in the new season of Happy’s Place. The NBC sitcom stars McEntire as Bobbie, “a tough but lovable woman who inherits her late father’s Tennessee tavern - only to discover that her new co-owner is also the half-sister she never knew she had,” per NBC. “They couldn’t be more different, but they’ll navigate this new life together... because at Happy’s Place, everyone is family.” The cast also includes Belissa Escobedo, Pablo Castelblanco, Tokala Black Elk and Melissa Peterman, who also starred with McEntire on Reba in the early 2000s. McEntire said on TODAY that “it’s pretty easy,” to act as though she’s falling in love with her real-life fiancé on the show. “It doesn’t take much acting at all.” She said later that it’s “a blast” to work together, and they’re both “grateful and thankful.”

In addition to Happy’s Place, McEntire’s team members on The Voice are gearing up for then Playoffs, which begin on Monday evening. She’s also making her hosting debut at this year’s Christmas in Rockefeller Center special. McEntire will take the stage, along with Marc Anthony, Halle Bailey, Michael Bublé, Kristin Chenoweth, Laufey, New Edition, Brad Paisley, Carly Pearce, the Radio City Rockettes and Gwen Stefani, plus special appearances by TODAY anchors Savannah Guthrie, Craig Melvin and Al Roker, NBC confirmed last month. Viewers can watch McEntire host the Christmas in Rockefeller Center special live on Wednesday (December 3) at 8 p.m. ET on NBC and Peacock.

Bob Delmont