Reba McEntire grieves chosen 'son' Brandon Blackstock after sudden death

Brandon Blackstock and Reba McEntire might not be related by blood but considered him her son all his life.

The 70-year-old country star met the late talent manager as his stepmom when she married ex Narvel Blackstock.

Reba formed a close relationship with her stepson, who died of cancer at the age of 48, and is left mourning the loss.

The songstress has repeatedly discussed their special bond in multiple interviews, including one with Entertainment Tonight in October 2021, where she said, “Brandon’s been my son forever it seems. Although he’s my stepson, I still love him like he’s my total — my blood.”

Reba shares son Shelby Blackstock, 35, and step children, Brandon Chassidy, and Shawna, with husband Narvel whom she married in 1989.

"I don’t consider Brandon, Chassidy and Shawna [Blackstock] stepchildren," McEntire said in an interview with The Boot in 2010. “I claim them all.”

The country star also shares a special friendship with Brandon’s ex-wife Kelly Clarkson and appeared on The Kelly Clarkson Show in 2019, where Kelly said, “I ended up marrying your oldest son and you got stuck with me more,” to which McEntire replied, “Thank goodness, thank goodness.”

Even after Kelly and Brandon split, Reba refused to take sides and maintained her bond with the duo separately.

“Kelly and I do talk, we text and I love them both, and so I can't play favorites because I've been a friend of Kelly for a long time," McEntire told Entertainment Tonight in 2021.