In the Cut-Throat World of Country Music, Reba McEntire and Miranda Lambert Champion One Another (2024)

To celebrate the September release of Country Music, the new documentary by director Ken Burns, Woman’s Day talked to three generations of female country music singers who have made an indelible mark on an industry that is notoriously tough, especially for women. “It’s still a fight every day for us to walk onstage and feel comfortable,” says Miranda Lambert. Luckily, female artists have a strong support system: one another. “Many of us write together; we support each other,” says Reba McEntire. “The camaraderie is special.”

McEntire, who has long been an inspiration and a mentor to up-and-coming female artists, and Lambert, the Academy of Country Music’s most awarded artist in history, are both finding ways to support today’s new crop of women country singers—like “Every Little Thing” hitmaker Carly Pearce. “Even on social media, we all champion one another,” says Pearce. In a candid chat, the three share their unique journeys in the industry and celebrate the sisterhood of country music.

Their Early Influences

Reba McEntire: Lots of great women inspired me, starting with my mother. Then there’s Loretta Lynn, Dolly Parton, Patsy Cline, Barbara Mandrell, Anne Murray, Tammy Wynette—all ladies I looked up to and highly respected and watched. Minnie Pearl is another lady I got to meet, later on, before she passed. I’m just a huge fan, but also an admirer of their strengths and what they gave to society, especially country music.

Miranda Lambert: I go across the spectrum from Tammy Wynette and Patsy Cline to Emmylou Harris—that generation. Then skip ahead to Patty Loveless, Faith Hill, Martina [McBride]. I’ve been obsessed with country music my whole life, so I’ve studied all of these women.

Carly Pearce: I grew up with grandparents who instilled in me the founding sisters of country music: people like Dolly Parton. Dolly was a huge influence and continues to be. I even worked at Dollywood! And I think she’s the essence of how you should carry yourself as a woman in country. Tammy Wynette, Patsy Cline, Loretta…those were the first ladies I listened to. Then I fell in love with Reba and Faith Hill and Trisha Yearwood and Patty Loveless and Shania Twain— that era of females who were really distinct on the radio.

RM: The ’90s were great. We had a blast—Wynonna [Judd], Trisha [Yearwood], Lee Ann Womack, Martina [McBride], myself. We were having fun rocking, and then here comes Shania. It was just like, Wow, man, this is so wonderful. It was an explosion.

CP: I always say I was born too late. I should have been in that era. I should have been in the ’90s.

Getting Ahead in Nashville

ML: The first person to ever show her true colors, which was just sweet and supportive, was [Grammy Award winner] Gretchen Wilson. We came out at the same time, and I was really young. She was just so sweet to me and, like, “Call me if you need anything.” Faith [Hill] sent me a note one day with a bracelet that was basically, like, “I wear this onstage, and when I get scared I just remember that I’m doing what I’m supposed to do.” A lot of them have been supportive and kind. It really gives you hope, because when you’re 19 and you’re just starting out, you’re scared to death. Everything’s new, and it’s hard, and you’re gone all the time, so having other women in the industry—especially icons like those—say, “Hey, you’re going to be OK; call me if you need anything” really meant the world to me.

RM: I was closest to Barbara Mandrell. We were friends early on. Barbara was a very energetic, loyal, determined, hardworking woman, and I learned a lot from her. You just go and do your job, you be prepared. She was doing six shows in Las Vegas when she was in her early teens, 13 years old. I’ll never forget her telling me that she cooked peanut brittle for her fan club’s Christmas gifts. Tons of peanut brittle, and she’d send it out to all her fans for Christmas. She was a devoted entertainer. She doesn’t get the attention she deserves.

CP: I’d been in Nashville 10 years. I had a record deal on Sony, and I lost it. I was in a group that was mentoring young girls trying to figure out whether they [wanted to be] artists or songwriters. All these girls were trying to be really strong and confident, even if they weren’t. Then I introduced myself and started crying: “I’m Carly Pearce, and I just lost my record deal, and have no idea what I’m doing.” Kelsea Ballerini was in there. She was about to put out her debut single, and we became friends right then, and she championed me long before I had my [current] record deal. She’s taken me out on every one of her tours prior to me having any singles on the radio. She talked about me in every interview. And when “Every Little Thing” happened, she sent a cake, flowers, and a card. She is the perfect example of a woman who had no reason other than her pure heart. I’ll never forget that, and I hope to pay it forward someday.

ML: It helps you pass it on. When people are nice to you, you turn around and you’re nice to someone else, because you realize how scary it is out there at first. It doesn’t necessarily get easier. You just get used to it. I think it’s important that you let the younger generation know, “Hey, we’re dealing with the same thing. We’re all in the same boat.”

On the Next Generation

ML: Maren Morris is just an incredible artist. She does what she wants unapologetically, which I think is really cool. She’s one of my favorite up-and-coming artists.

RM: I always learn stuff from the younger females. It’s a lot of fun. We just did a thing for Spotify with RaeLynn, Maddie and Tae, Abby Anderson, and Lauren Jenkins. I would say, “Who are you listening to in the country music business now?” And they’d tell me. And then I’d say, “Well, who do you think is really working hard and isn’t getting the attention?” And oh my gosh! They were jumping up on the soapbox to talk about this person who was not getting the recognition they should. It was so inspiring to see them say that instead of “I have no idea what anybody else is doing.”

CP: You have Kelsea, Maren and myself, and Runaway June and Lindsay Ell really doing some things on the charts that are amazing, and I think we’re all really happy for and rooting for one another. We know we’re just continuing to bulldoze it down so the next girl in 10 years is sitting there watching us the way we watched Faith and Reba and wondering, “Oh my gosh, can I be like them?”

On Working With Other Women

ML: The Roadside Bars & Pink Guitars Tour [kicking off this month] is all females. I get to go watch these girls every night and get inspired and try to go kill it after I watch a full show of girls who killed it. It’s such a driving force to lift each other up and push each other. I’m in a group with Ashley Monroe and Angaleena Presley called Pistol Annies. We put into songs the things you talk about at a girls’ night with wine. We want other women to know that they’re not alone. We’re not afraid to talk about the good, bad, and ugly, because it’s real.

RM: I love to work with other women because it gives me strength; it gives me inspiration. And I say to myself, “Wow, they’re doing this, and I can do that, and I’m going to put more work into it and I’m going to be this, because they inspire me.” They show me better ways of doing things.

CP: I think it’s a sisterhood. I think you’re seeing, more than ever, lots of women on the radio, and I feel like we all believe that if one of us is winning, we’re all winning. We are championing each other.

ML: There’s room for all of us, and competition is healthy. It makes me want to work even harder.