Emmys 2025: You’ll Thank Reba McEntire and Little Big Town for This Golden Girls Tribute

During the 2025 Emmy Awards, Reba McEntire and Little Big Town’s Karen Fairchild and Kimberly Schlapman sang a tribute to honor the legacy of The Golden Girls.

The 2025 Emmys want to thank the Golden Girls for being a friend.

In fact, the award show held an onstage tribute to the seven-season sitcom—and its stars Beatrice Arthur, Betty White, Rue McLanahan and Estelle Getty—during the ceremony.

Reba McEntire and Little Big Town‘s Karen Fairchild and Kimberly Schlapman took to the stage to perform the series’ theme song, “Thank You For Being a Friend” before the trio presented the category for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series (which went to Hacks‘ Hannah Einbinder).

“Blanche, Dorothy, Sophia and Rose,” Reba said. “Iconic characters who we continue to love 40 years after they first graced our television screens.”

Kimberly continued, “To the characters and the legends who brought them to laugh, thank you for being our friends.”

Ahead of the ceremony, during Live From E!: 2025 Emmys, Reba and her fiancé Rex Linn spoke to Zuri Hall about their love for the series.

“I still am a fan of it,” Reba gushed. “It’s a show that you can watch forever.”

Rex, meanwhile, added, “If you’re not a fan of The Golden Girls, it would be like not liking puppies. I’m absolutely
a Golden Girls fan.”

Reba also shared it’s Dorothy, played by Bea, that was the character she related to most. As for why? The 70-year-old quipped, “I think I’m to the point. Blunt. I love her, she’s hysterical.”

Kevin Winter/Getty Images

And when it comes to the Golden Girls theme song, the message about friendship strikes true for Reba after fifty years in the industry.

“The best thing about this entertainment business, no matter what genre it is, is the friends that you make when you’re going up the ladder,” she said, before joking, “And hopefully those friends will be there if you happen to be going back down the ladder.”

The Happy’s Place star continued, “But overall, friends are the best thing to collect when you’re in this business.”

But Golden Girls isn’t the only beloved series getting a spotlight during this year’s Emmy Awards. In addition to the tribute, the ceremony promises reunions from the casts of Grey’s Anatomy, Gilmore Girls and Law & Order during the broadcast.