The Real Story Behind Why Reba McEntire Won't Be Hosting the 2021 CMA Awards
Last year, Reba McEntire and Darius Rucker teamed up to host the 2020 CMA Awards. It was a duo that we didn't know we needed, but let's just say that they set the bar pretty high. The year before, Reba also teamed up with country queens Carrie Underwood and Dolly Parton to take on the 2019 CMA Awards hosting duties.
But this year, the CMA Awards announced that Luke Bryan will be taking over hosting as the first solo host of Country Music's Biggest Night. As a two-time CMA Entertainer of the Year winner, he'll definitely be able to hold down the fort, but fans are left wondering why Reba didn't return to host this year's show.
In an October interview with Billboard, Reba revealed "to my knowledge" that she wasn't returning as a host, which implies Billboard simply decided to go with another artist. According to Taste of Country, the CMAs has not commented with an exact reason why they decided to go with Luke. However, when the outlet spoke to Reba, she showed no signs of disappointment, and even offered some advice to the new host. "You've got to be direct-able," she said. "Because if you’re running over, or running short … you've got to adapt to that. You can't be locked into, 'This is the way it's going to be and there's not going to be any changes.'"
We'll surely miss seeing Reba in her element as host, but we're sure Luke and the star-studded list of presenters for this year's CMA Awards are going to blow it out of the water.
Just because Reba is taking a step away from the stage, doesn't mean she's leaving fans in the dark. With the second season of her Spotify podcast Living & Learning, Reba's giving fans a more intimate look into her life, including relationships, shaping your career, and the rewards of giving back. She'll be dropping a new episode every Monday so mark your calendars!
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