The Inappropriate Red Dress Reba McEntire Never Should've Re-Worn

Country music sensation Reba McEntire built her empire on being hilariously honest, vulnerable, and, well, country. Since putting out her first self-titled album in 1977, she's sold out arenas, traveled the world, and even become a successful actor through her projects like "Christmas in Tune," "Happy's Place," and countless other cameos. With decades of performing under her belt, it comes as no surprise that she's worn just about everything in her closet at least once, as proven by Reba McEntire's stunning style transformation. The dress she chose to wear a second time, however, may not have been the best option.

Back at the 1993 CMAs, the "Fancy" singer donned a risqué red velvet dress with sheer fabric exposing the plunging neckline. The legendary musician felt all of her oats when she first wore the dress, revealing in a special "50 Years of the CMA Awards" edition of People in October 2016 how the audience originally reacted: "I had only had two fittings with [designer] Sandy Spika...And when I walked out on the stage, I heard the audience go 'Oooooh!' And I thought, 'Dang, I look good!'" Unfortunately, though, not everyone agreed.

For the time, and McEntire's aesthetic itself, this dress was quite out of character, not to mention the fact that country music abides by more conservative standards. The dress easily became one of Reba McEntire's worst red-carpet looks for the time. She even expressed during the aforementioned interview with People that she didn't quite know what she was in for with her stylist, noting, "It was very revealing and I didn't know that!" To make matters worse, her father even thought she had put on the dress backwards. Though the dress and McEntire are iconic in their own rights, perhaps wearing it again in 2018 wasn't the best idea.

Reba McEntire was 38 years old when she wore that red dress to sing "Does He Love You" with Linda Davis at the CMAs in 1993, and she was 63 when she sang the same song with Kelly Clarkson, and wore the same dress again to the 2018 ACMs. To her credit, she looked as good, if not better, in the garment when she wore it for the second time, but the move did earn her a ton of press coverage, and not all of it was good. She did change one aspect of the infamous look, though, and we're not talking about the volume of her hair.

When McEntire brought the garment out of retirement, she decided to pair it with red, fuzzy slippers, but she had good reason. The "I'm a Survivor" singer was hosting the American Country Awards that year, and the red dress was the last of seven outfit changes. The footwear mostly consisted of cowboy boots and heels, so it's no wonder the host wanted to give her feet a break at the end of the night. Speaking of awkward award-show moments, our hairstylist told us that Reba McEntire likely wore a wig at the 2024 ACMs.