LeAnn Rimes says ‘9-1-1: Nashville’ fans are going to be “Team Dixie” after this week’s episode: “You understand how important Don is to her”

Starring in 9-1-1: Nasvhille, LeAnn Rimes is right back in Music City where she belongs. As the fiery Dixie Bennings, Rimes commands every scene as she works effortlessly alongside seasoned TV veterans Chris O’Donnell and Jessica Capshaw. Bennings is the mother of Don Hart’s lovechild, Blue Bennings (Hunter McVey), and she uses that connection to scheme her way back into her former boyfriend’s life, using their son’s desire to follow in his father’s footsteps at Station 113. Bennings is broke and desperately needs Hart and his rich wife, Blythe (Capshaw), to pay for her vocal cord surgery so she can get back to pursuing her dreams of country music stardom.

“She has this beautiful heart underneath all these layers,” said Rimes of her complex character. In its most recent installment, “Don Begins,” the series looks at Hart’s origin story where it’s revealed that Hart wouldn’t be anywhere without Bennings. Rimes “didn’t know much” about how deep Bennings’ and Hart’s connection was until she read the script. “Knowing how Don and Dixie became Don and Dixie really will help inform the choices that I make as an actress from here on out,” explained Rimes.

Audiences finally got to see how Bennings helped Hart confront his childhood trauma (his parents and baby sister were killed in a senseless fire) and how she inspired him to become a firefighter as she pursed her dreams of being a country superstar. Rimes wrote and sings the song “Wild Things Run,” which the young Bennings (played by Noa Bess Solomon) performs in the episode. “It felt good to be utilized,” said Rimes. “Music is what I do for a living. This acting thing is second.” Rimes made the most of her chance to show the characters’ relationship through Bennings’ eyes. “Dixie and Don have this wild relationship.They’re either running towards or running away from each other,” said Rimes. “The universe always brings them back together somehow.”

Rimes spoke to Decider over Zoom to discuss Bennings’ and Hart’s origin story and working with O’Donnell. She also teased the upcoming 9-1-1/ 9-1-1: Nashville crossover.

DECIDER: LeAnn, you are an absolute revelation as Dixie Bennings! What’ has it been like to sink your teeth into a dramatic role as rich as this one?

LEANN RIMES: Oh, she’s a blast. I love her so much. She has this beautiful heart underneath all these layers, but she’s so manipulative [laughs]! If you think about it, she’s a single mom with her own tough upbringing. She was slighted by the music business and never really got her chance in the spotlight. Manipulation has become a survival mechanism for her. Despite all that, she’s got a lot of love in her heart.

I want to get into this week’s episode, “Don Begins.” It’s such a beautifully story about the origins of the relationships between Don and Dixie and Blythe. How much of this backstory were you aware of before this episode?

I didn’t know much. When I read the script, I was like, “I wish we would have actually known all of this from the beginning.” It would have been so helpful for me in certain scenes, but of course, that’s not how TV works. Knowing how Don and Dixie became Don and Dixie really will help inform the choices that I make as an actress from here on out.

The audience really gets to see that spark between Don and Dixie and to understand how wild and untamed their love was. It’s clear how important Don is to her. You understand exactly what they mean to one another. After this episode, I think a lot of people will be team Dixie… for a bit [laughs]. Of course, things unravel pretty quickly. Once day you love Dixie, the next day you hate Dixie, and then it’s right back to loving her. That’s one of the things I love about this show. Depending on what episode you catch, you’ll have a different opinion of Dixie.

Noa Bess Solomon does a truly wonderful job channeling the young Dixie.

She is amazing. The casting was just so perfect. She’s so magnetic on screen. I love watching her.

Did you get a chance to talk with her?

No, I’ve never actually met her, which is crazy. I met the girl who plays the youngest version of Dixie, who was really sweet. Though, Noa had a birthday during filming the episode, and I filmed a little video and sent it to her. I hope we get to actually meet. She really captured the essence of Dixie. She beautifully shows you Dixie before Blue came into the picture.

We do get to see the young Dixie perform your new single “Wild Things Run,” which is a real treat! Can you talk about how the song came to be?

They have wonderful music writers for the show, but when I read the script, I called our showrunner, Rashad [Raisani], and asked: “hey, can I take a stab at this? I really understand the emotional point of view of this character. I really think I can come up with something powerful that could capture that relationship in that moment in time.” He told me to go right ahead.

It felt good to be utilized. Music is what I do for a living [laughs]. This acting thing is separate, but making music is actually what I do. I wrote the song with my friend Darryl Brown, who often creates with me, with me, over Zoom in 3 and a half hours. The song title “Wild Things Run” came to me while I was on a massage table in Hawaii. Dixie and Don have this wild relationship, but they’re either running towards or running away from each other. The universe always brings them back together somehow. The song captures such a moment in their relationship.

To be able to use my song for the show and then put it out as a separate record was really fun. I got to provide Dixie’s singing voice in the episode. I had to make myself sound 20 years younger, which is very hard to do, by the way [laughs]. So, two versions of the song exist in the world, which is kind of special.

I knew it was your singing voice by the third note.

[Laughs] Of course, people are going to know it’s my voice. I tried to take all the bottom out of my voice and make it a little thinner. It took me back to the Coyote Ugly days. I was Piper’s voice in that movie. I was getting to relive those moments.

A lot of this week’s episode takes place in the past, but there is a wonderful scene between Dixie and Don in the park when she helps him channel his rage by creating a trauma journal. Can you talk about filming that scene with Chris O’Donnell?

I love Chris. That scene was the first thing we filmed with just the two of us. It was a really emotional moment for his character. Dixie lived next door to the house where his family was killed. She’s really the only person who can get him to truly open up about his trauma. Their connection is different from the one he has with Blythe. Dixie and Don have their own love story. It’s a beautiful little scene.

I think it was important that Dixie showed up for Don’s victim impact statement. Do you think he asked her to be there or did she just know he needed her?

She knew she had to be there for him. During that scene, you can see me crying, and I wasn’t even trying [laughs]. I was really moved by Chris’s performance! There’s a scene after that when the 113 and the rest of us greet him outside the courtroom. They’re all congratulating him and hugging him, but Dixie hangs back. That was my choice to stay in the background. Dixie is reliving the trauma of that day just as must as Don. Dixie is somewhat subdued after hearing Don finally articulate his feelings and forgive the man who took his family from him. Dixie’s and Don’s relationship is very complicated, but there is real love there.

I love whenever Blythe and Dixie face off, and we get a delicious exchange in this week’s episode. Blythe tries to offer an olive branch, but Dixie just can’t accept it. Why do you think Dixie can’t move forward with Blythe?

Because she has her man! I mean, hello [laughs]! Don is the father of her child, and there’s always going to be that pull toward him. Dixie just can’t let Blythe in. It hurts too much. They do try to get along at times, but Dixie somehow seems to always unravel that. She can’t help herself.

As Dixie says, the universe always seems to bring her and Don back together.

That is her line. And it is true.

Before I let you go, I need to ask you about the upcoming 9-1-1 and 9-1-1: Nashville crossover in which the 113 and the 118 face off in the firefighter games! Will we see Dixie there to cheer Blue on?

Oooh yes, of course you see Dixie there. You’ll see some exchanges between Blythe and Dixie in that episode. You might see a little flirtation [laughs]. Dixie is going to be there when hot guys are in the room. Ryan [Guzman] and Oliver [Stark] were amazing. I’m a huge fan of 9-1-1. So, to have the boys come over for this great rivalry was so much fun.