Dustin Lynch Kept Reba McEntire’s Tissues After His Grand Ole Opry Induction
When Dustin Lynch got inducted into the Grand Ole Opry, tears of joy were abundant.
The crying wasn't just coming from the Tennessee singer behind hits such as "Good Girl" and "Small Town Boy," however. Opry veteran and country legend Reba McEntire — who inducted the youngblood Opry member last year — was also contributing to the waterworks.
But it was McEntire's onstage helpfulness that caused Lynch to hang onto an unlikely souvenir from that evening. Surprisingly, he kept the tissues that McEntire provided at a pivotal moment in his performance, as Lynch recounted to Taste of Country Nights before the 52nd CMA Awards last month.
"She was so gracious to induct me into the Grand Ole Opry as the newest member," Lynch explains. "I was so caught off guard. She was saying such nice things about me; it started making me cry. Then Reba started crying. But she gets to leave the stage, and I've got to perform another song. I'm like, 'Crap; I'm crying, this sucks.'"
"Then she comes running out in the middle of my song and hands me tissues. So that was great, it was a big help," he continues. "I was all snotty, and you can't be having that on stage. So I was like, 'Well, I've got to keep these.' Now I've got them in a shadowbox — my Opry trophy and my Reba tissues."
Talk about a rare keepsake. Does McEntire know about Lynch's stash of authentic Opry-used Reba tissues? Not quite — it looks like the 2019 CMA Awards co-host is none the wiser ... for now.
"I don't think she does," Lynch admits. "But I'll see her at some point and get to tell her that. She'll get a kick out of it."
Elsewhere in the chat, the singer revealed that his upcoming album has "a couple" songs inspired by his current girlfriend, Kelli Seymour. Lynch shares that leisure time outside of country music has also helped.
"I've been able to make some memories and hang out with friends more," Lynch says of his time off. "When you pull your phone out to take pictures, you know you're doing something right. And my photo album's growing quickly."
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