瑞芭·麥肯泰爾

Reba McEntire（瑞芭·麥肯泰爾）1955年3月28日生於Oklahoma的Chockie，家中有四個孩子。她從母親那裡接受最初的音樂教育，經常在去牛場的路上教孩子們唱歌。5歲那年，有次在一家飯店大廳里大聲唱《Jesus Loves Me》，有位牛仔把一枚硬幣放到了她手裡，這是她掙的第一份唱歌錢。十幾歲時，McEntire和妹妹Susic、哥哥Pake組成三重唱組，在一起唱了好幾年，並希望能和一家唱片公司簽約。1974年，McEntire在Oklahoma City的全國賽牛決賽上演唱國歌，受到歌手兼作曲家Red Steagall賞識，幫她與Nashville的Mercury唱片公司簽了約。

在Mercury公司獲得了4首進入排行榜前10名的歌曲后，1984年她轉投到MCA唱片公司。1985年的《How Blue》榮獲榜首，一直到1992年的《Is There Life Out There》，幾年間總共有24首歌曲進入前10名，包括14首第一名。在此期間，她的專輯總銷量達兩千萬張。她還4次獲得鄉村音樂協會的“最佳女歌手獎”，1986年獲得美國鄉村音樂學院CMA的“最佳演員獎”。自從1976年以《I Don’t Want to Be a One Night Stand》上榜到1983年初以《Can’t Even Get the Blues》榮登榜首，Reba McEntire花了將近7年時間。

McEntire可說是作為鄉村音樂的皇後進入90年代的，不斷有歌曲進入前10名，多次名列第一，並以不斷創新來維護這個地位。她在一些歌里加入了一點流行音樂色彩，如她唱的《Sunday Kind of Love》、《Walk On》和《For My Broken Heart》等。她的舞台演出也越發令人目眩，大場面、新服裝、大屏幕，外加伴舞。評論界批評她放棄了鄉村音樂，但McEntire堅持認為她只是投歌迷所好。她與歌迷有著良好的關係，她說：“每次演出后我和他們交談，我很注意我的歌迷俱樂部和他們給我的信。我從他們那得到信息，如果我走得太遠，他們也會告訴我的。“她也和電台聽眾保持密切接觸，經常打電話給他們徵求意見。

McEntire的成功秘訣，就在於一貫堅持自己的風格，不張揚，對自己的成就保持誠實的態度。她說：“我真沒有帶來什麼新東西。我學習，向每個人學，注意觀察、研究，然後我作出貢獻，但確實什麼也沒有帶來。我是從Oklahoma來的無知的鄉下人。我要感謝我的導師們，像Loretta Lynn、Dolly Parton、Barbara Mandrell等等，正是由於有機會和她們在一起，我才能成為一名好歌手，對音樂有所認識。我希望我對歌唱技巧有所提高，鼓舞了一些孩子去唱歌，而最重要的，我希望，我祈禱，我一直是人們心目中的一個正面形象。”終於，這一切努力使她成為鄉村音樂中最成功最受歡迎的女歌星。

McEntire的成功秘訣，就在於一貫堅持自己的風格，不張揚，對自己的成就保持誠實的態度。她說：“我真沒有帶來什麼新東西。我學習，向每個人學，注意觀察、研究，然後我作出貢獻，但確實什麼也沒有帶來。我是從Oklahoma來的無知的鄉下人。我要感謝我的導師們，像Loretta Lynn、Dolly Parton、Barbara Mandrell等等，正是由於有機會和她們在一起，我才能成為一名好歌手，對音樂有所認識。我希望我對歌唱技巧有所提高，鼓舞了一些孩子去唱歌，而最重要的，我希望，我祈禱，我一直是人們心目中的一個正面形象。”終於，這一切努力使她成為鄉村音樂中最成功最受歡迎的女歌星。

五千萬張唱片的銷售記錄，使得出道28年的Reba McEntire成為鄉村音樂領域內最成功的女歌手。不僅如此，她在百老匯、電影、電視等領域內也是得心應手，同時她還寫了兩本書，售出達一百萬之巨。

As McEntire sees it, amazing songs have little to do with genre, and everything to do with emotion and nuance. "Ive been a fan of different kinds of music all my life," she says. "I really dont like to categorize music. To me, theres only two categories: good and bad. And I try to sing the good songs, and listen to good music. When it touches my heart, and I can deliver it with all my heart and soul, then its a good Reba McEntire song. In the end, I want all the songs to touch my listeners hearts." Its that devotion to making quality music that brings her audience back to Reba again and again. "The great thing about it is, my fans have always continued to go along with me on these journeys I take, whether its television, music, Broadway or movies. They really hang in there with me, and I sure do appreciate that. Its been a good journey." The next chapter on that journey is about to begin, with Duets - and the amazing music created when Rebas signature voice finds new harmony with a few stellar friends. "I hope people are going to be caught up in the moment of listening to this music," says McEntire. "Theres a lot of love in this record, because I love these people that I get to sing with. And I think people are going to love it, too. I honestly do."

From the moment you hear the voice, you know it: fierce and powerful, clear and passionate, a voice that has sold 49 million records, a voice that could belong to no one else but the woman millions of fans the world over know only as Reba. So what do you do when youre the owner of that iconic voice -- and the embodiment of a genre-bending artistic presence that spans the worlds of music, screen and stage? If youre Reba McEntire, you find creative soul mates in 11 other amazing voices and produce a groundbreaking collection of music simply titled Reba Duets. Or, as McEntire herself might describe it, you gather up some friends old and new, and have a party - oh, and make an amazing new album at the same time. "It was like a family reunion. It was just so much fun!" says the easygoing superstar. And the results? "Well, Im just so tickled!" she says with her trademark Southern charm. "I cant wait for everyone to hear it." Duets was a long time coming, says McEntire. "You have to keep creating things, thinking about whats next and how to keep it fresh for your fans," she says. "Ive always thought a duets album would be a great thing to get to do, and the timing was finally right to make it happen."

專輯

根據美國唱片工業協會全美範圍內專輯銷量認證數據，Reba McEntire

為美國樂壇史上最成功女歌手排行榜第七名。