Cowboys & Indians Magazine Hails Country Queen Reba McEntire

Online, July 19, 2010 (Newswire.com) - Reba McEntire, the esteemed queen of country music, reigns supreme in the September 2010 issue of Cowboys & Indians, The Premier Magazine of the West. McEntire is showcased in a C&I cover-story profile that focuses on her latest chart-topping success - Keep on Loving You, her most recent studio album, is among the top sellers of her nearly 30-year recording career - and the enduring popularity of Reba, her acclaimed sitcom, which continues to attract millions of viewers in internationally syndicated reruns after six seasons in network TV prime time.

In an exclusive C&I interview, McEntire talks about the many highlights of her showbiz career, harkening back to her "discovery" by cowboy poet and recording artist Red Steagall - who remains one of her biggest fans - and bluntly addressing the recurring debates over what constitutes "pure country" music.

"I've done the most traditional country music possible," McEntire says, "and then I've gone way over the line on doing a lot of songs that were not traditional country music. I'm going on my 35th year in the music business. And I think always experimenting and trying to do something different has something to do with why I've been in this business as long as I have.

"What always appeals to me is the song. And whether it's a little more traditional, or a little more contemporary, that's what I'm going to sing. Because in my opinion, there's only two kinds of songs, two categories: Good and bad. Of course, when I sing it, it's going to be country. The instrumentation is what changes it to something that's more contemporary or traditional."

The secret of her continuing success? Hard work and great collaborators have helped a lot, McEntire acknowledges. "But it's truly by the grace of God," she says. "I've had so much help from God, saying: 'You need to do this. Take this path.' And I always listened. He's always been my best friend, and He's always guided me. He's my best tour manager. He's always directed me right."

Elsewhere in the September issue of Cowboys & Indians, now on sale at newsstands everywhere, writer David Hofstede salutes "The Queen of Technicolor," actress Rhonda Fleming, who appeared opposite such luminaries as Charlton Heston, Ronald Regan and Glenn Ford in several classic '50s Westerns. Photojournalist Dean Krakel journeys to "The Heart of the Earth" to detail the sometimes dangerous process of turquoise mining in America. C&I contributor Chuck Restivo talks with renowned animal behavior scientist Temple Grandin, whose life and work inspired an Emmy-nominated HBO movie starring Claire Danes. And author C.J. Fox kicks back for a "Live from" interview while on tour to promote his series of mystery novels about Wyoming game warden Joe Pickett.

But wait, there's more: The October issue also showcases Western and Native American art, with profiles of four diverse Western artists - Joseph Seyler, Theodore Wadell, Brian Jungen and Angela Swedberg -- and an interview with Poteet Victory, whose Native-inspired contemporary art provides a surprising complement to traditional Western and Santa Fe-style homes.