Reba McEntire credits the late Kenny Rogers for ‘saving my sanity’ following tragic plane crash

Reba McEntire has credited the late Kenny Rogers for ‘saving my sanity’ after her bandmates and manager were killed in a plane crash in 1991.

Kenny helped Reba cope with the incident by inviting her to work on his TV movie, The Gambler Returns: The Luck of the Draw.

‘Kenny saved my sanity in ’91 when he asked me to come do The Gambler movie,’ Reba, 65, told Taste Of Country. ‘I was still in a state of disbelief and not knowing what I’m gonna do moving forward after the plane crash.’

Kenny passed away at age 81 from natural causes at his home in Georgia in March 2020.

‘I miss him so much,’ Reba continued. ‘He’s such a special person and a big-hearted giver.’

The tragic plane crash which took the lives of most of Reba’s band occurred on the US-Mexico border in 2001, according to the Los Angeles Times. 

All ten people on board died after the jet crashed into the Otay Mountain.

Those on board included seven of Reba’s bandmates, her manager, and two pilots.

‘She was very close to all of them,’ her spokesperson told the LA Times.

‘Some of them had been with her for years. Reba is totally devastated by this. It’s like losing part of your family. Right now she just wants to get back to Nashville.’

Following the devastating loss, Reba dedicated her subsequent album, For My Broken Heart, to her late teammates. 

‘It’s surreal,’ Reba previously told Billboard of the loss. ‘One person having an accident is hard enough, but you multiply that times eight, and it was eight of your friends, it makes it really hard. 

‘You enter a protective shell, and you relay the information as best you can, because that’s what you’re supposed to do. But I can tell you no amount of education or on-the-job training can prepare you for that kind of situation.’

Reba will be releasing the 30th anniversary edition of her album Rumor Has It on September 11, 2020.