Her father and her grandfather John Wesley McEntire (February 19, 1897 – February 13, 1976) were both champion steer ropers. Her father was a World Champion steer roper three times (in 1957, 1958 and 1961). John McEntire was the son of Clark Stephen McEntire (September 10, 1855 – August 15, 1935) and Helen Florida McEntire (née Brown; May 19, 1868 – May 16, 1947). McEntire's mother had wished to become a country-music artist but instead became a schoolteacher, although she did teach her children how to sing well.