Reba McEntire recalls and regrets missing last missed call from Dolly Parton

Reba McEntire is revealing that her longtime friend Dolly Parton tried to reach her just weeks before her death, in a call McEntire wasn't able to take. 

Speaking to Entertainment Tonight around what would have been "Dolly Parton Appreciation Day" on August 25, McEntire recalled the missed connection. 

"She did call me the last of July, and I was in a meeting and I missed her call. I tried to get back in touch with her and I couldn't; never made connection. And then when my buddy called me and said, 'Dolly's gone,' I thought, 'I'll never know why she called me.'"

Parton died peacefully in Nashville on August 25 following a brief battle with cancer. 

McEntire was among the many artists who paid tribute at the time, writing on social media, "Dolly, thank you for all the wonderful things you did for us here on earth. There will never ever be another you. We will remember and cherish every memory and every note you ever played and sang."

McEntire and Parton's friendship dated back to the 1970s, when the two first crossed paths at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville. 

McEntire has recalled performing there for the first time in 1977 and being told she could only sing one song instead of two because "Dolly Parton just pulled in the parking lot, and she's going to take one of your songs." 

The two went on to collaborate professionally on multiple occasions, including Parton's 2005 guest appearance on McEntire's sitcom Reba, their 2021 duet Does He Love You, and a reimagined version of Parton's Light of a Clear Blue Morning alongside Miley Cyrus, Lainey Wilson and Queen Latifah earlier this year. 

Earlier this month, McEntire delivered an emotional tribute performance of Parton's Appalachian Memories at the Emmy Awards.