Martina McBride to Daughters: 'Be a Leader'
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When it comes to music Martina McBride says she has always gravitated towards songs that “portray women with strength.”
It comes as no surprise, then, that the country singer’s biggest piece of advice for her three daughters is to “be a leader, not a follower.”
“I hope they hear that in the back of their heads when they’re in a group,” she adds in a new interview with Babble. “I think it’s important, especially when navigating their way through peer pressure and making a place for themselves.”
With Delaney Katharine, 15, recently enrolling in a new all-girls school for her freshman year, Martina says that keeping track of that group has become a challenge. “She has a whole new group of friends,” Martina, 43, explains. “It seems to be increasing by the day … She says so-and-so is my best friend, and [the next day] she’s my best friend.”
Keeping the lines of communication open — “having some sense of the people she’s hanging out with, and their parents, who they are,” Martina explains — is a priority. “They’re able to talk to me about anything — boys, school pressure, peer pressure, friends — and hopefully that will continue,” the singer reveals.
“Yesterday, [Delaney] said to me that she felt like she can talk to me about anything. That’s such a great thing because I want to be the person that can help guide her and let her feel like she can open up to me. But the only way I can help her is to know what’s going on, to know the truth. I’ve always said, ‘I can’t help you if I don’t know.’”
With that said, Martina says that one-on-one dates are something that won’t occur until Delaney is 16 — and even then, her firstborn “doesn’t seem interested in doing that.”
“Her friends are still going on group dates, so she’s not in a hurry.”
Click below to read about whether Martina supports a career in music for her daughters.
Neither Delaney nor her younger sisters Emma Justine, 12 next month, and Ava Rose Kathleen, 4 ½, have “expressed interest” in following in mom’s footsteps, although Martina admits “they’ve all got talent” as singers. “For some reason, I don’t think it’s their passion,” she muses.
Delaney is instead showing an early affinity for photography, while Emma is enthusiastic about sports and Ava is “into coloring and Spongebob and drawing,” Martina reports.
“It’s so much fun to see them developing into the people they’re going to be and really discovering who they are … Whatever their interests and passions are, I try to provide them with as many opportunities as I can until they stumble upon what really lights them up.”
Should the girls change course and decide that singing is indeed their calling, Martina says she would “be extremely supportive” — but only if the timing is right, however! “I would tell them to wait,” Martina reveals.
“I definitely think they should finish high school. If you’re talented when you’re 14, you’ll still be talented when you’re 19. It’s important to experience a normal childhood and grow up. Then follow your dreams.”
Martina made one of her own dreams come true when she posed for the cover of SHAPE magazine in a bikini last year. The motivation was twofold. “I thought it was a good way to show that women at every age can be healthy and in shape,” Martina explains, “And I thought it would be a good example for my daughters, so I said okay.”
Noting that the media puts much pressure on young girls to stay thin, Martina says that body image hasn’t been an image for Delaney, Emma and Ava thus far.
“We definitely talk about it. I tell them, first of all, to eat well. It’s not about the number on the scale, it’s about how you feel and if you’re healthy. They’re very athletic and active, and they play sports, so they’re really not obsessed with it.”
The girls are Martina’s children with husband John McBride.
Source: Babble
