Dolly Parton, the singer, composer, actress, philanthropist, advocate, and amusement park impresario, has died, her nephew Bryan Seaver confirmed on Tuesday, August 25. She was 80 years old.
A message from the family of Dolly Parton. pic.twitter.com/9DNRgRx0uH
Seaver, revealed the news in a video posted across Parton’s platforms: “My name is Bryan Seaver, son of Cassie Parton, and I’m representing the Parton and Owens family today announcing the passing of my aunt, Dolly Rebecca Parton Dean, Sister, Sis and Granny to one generation and Gigi to the next,” he says. “This video announcement is something Dolly asked of me years ago, before I fully absorbed it as a future reality. As her head of security for more than two decades, a role my father Larry held before me, I have imagined the heaviness of this moment but haven’t truly felt it til now.”
Parton, whose accolades included 11 Grammy awards, an Emmy, the Oscars’ Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award, and recognition from sources as diverse as Ms. magazine and the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, was born in 1946 in the small community of Pittman Center, Tennessee, near the Great Smoky Mountains. The family soon moved to a one-bedroom cabin in the nearby town of Locust Ridge, a dwelling that figures proudly in Parton’s rags-to-riches lore. She was one of 12 children; Parton’s father worked as a sharecropper and tobacco planter, and her mother entertained the large family with Appalachian stories and music.
Reminder that Dolly Parton didn't leave this world as some fragile lady, she left like a hot rockstar in heels & leather. pic.twitter.com/JICqAvp9u7
Parton began singing in her local church at the age of six, and picked up her first guitar a year later. She was encouraged by her mother’s brother, Bill Owen, a singer and songwriter of some renown, and he guided her through her first radio and local television appearances at the age of 10. She recorded her first single at 13 and, that same year, made her debut with her uncle at the Grand Ole Opry at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium. She was introduced by none other than Johnny Cash (“we’ve got a little girl here from up in East Tennessee”) and performed George Jones’s “You Gotta Be My Baby” getting called back for three encores. The day after graduating high school, she headed to Nashville, where destiny awaited.
Her first successes came by writing songs for others with her uncle, including “Put It Off Until Tomorrow,” which was a hit for Bill Phillips, and “Fuel to the Flame” for Skeeter Davis. Other songs were recorded by Hank Williams Jr. and Kitty Wells. Producers pushed Parton’s own singing career in more of a pop than country/western direction, which did not really connect with audiences. She persevered, though, and released her first LP, Hello, I’m Dolly, at the age of 21.
The first track, “Dumb Blonde”—one of the few songs Parton recorded that she did not write—predicted a lot that would follow. “Just because I'm blonde/don't think I'm dumb/'cause this dumb blonde ain't nobody's fool,” she sang.
“From the bottom of my heart, i’ve been always proud of you and i’m proud to be your fairy godmother.. you really helped my career, you introduced me to a whole new set of fans, young ones. (At Hannah Montana)” - Dolly Parton to Miley Cyrus pic.twitter.com/MkR0nJzYKR
— Miley Updates (@MileyUpdates) August 25, 2026
That same year, Porter Wagoner invited Parton to join his weekly television show, replacing an outgoing Norma Jean. The duo began recording together, releasing a string of hits over the course of six years. Signed to RCA, Parton continued to release solo work, which was not as successful as her work with Wagoner—but many of the songs would go on to become more popular. In 1970, she finally scored a solo hit single with a version of the classic corn pone tune “Mule Skinner Blues” (replete with whip cracks and yodeling). With the release of “Joshua” in 1971, Parton had her first chart-topper that she composed herself.
“Joshua,” which blends talking blues with Parton’s soaring soprano, is a down-home tale about mountain men and dogs, and is pretty damn catchy. (It shares some commonalities with Johnny Cash’s “A Boy Named Sue,” which is a compliment.) More hits came, including the religion-tinged “Coat of Many Colors,” leading to 1973 and the release of one of the finest works of art of the 20th century, “Jolene.”
As the legend goes, Parton and Carl Dean were in a bank and the teller (with flamin’ locks of auburn hair) was gorgeous enough to make Dolly Parton feel inadequate. The jumpy, emotionally bare song was a smash, and would later be covered by Olivia Newton John, the White Stripes, and Beyoncé, among others. What’s more, Parton is believed to have written “Jolene” on the same night she composed “I Will Always Love You,” a farewell ode to Porter Wagoner. She recorded it to great acclaim at the time, but years later it became a powerhouse hit for Whitney Houston.
“I Will Always Love You” marked an important step for Parton as an independent businesswoman. She was approached by Col. Tom Parker, saying that Elvis Presely was eager to record the song. He is said to have sung it to Priscilla Presley as their divorce was finalized. But to make a deal, Presely would require half of the publishing rights. Parton declined, just a day before the scheduled session—a risky move at the time that secured a great fortune for the future.
In 1977, Parton began producing her own recordings, beginning with the album New Harvest…First Gathering, which saw her incorporating more pop elements into her sound. She became a mainstay on television specials throughout the late 1977s, flashing her winning smile and sharp wit, oftentimes punching back at “just jokin’” barbs about her appearance. No one was quicker to make cracks about her own bustline than Dolly Parton.
In 1980 Parton co-starred in the feminist comedy 9 to 5 with Lily Tomlin and Jane Fonda, and also recorded its theme song. A monumental success, the song remains so ingrained in American culture that many people still quote from it without even realizing it. The song won two Grammys in the country categories, but lost song of the year to “Bette Davis Eyes”—which is a good song, but come on.
Parton’s performance in the film 9 to 5 is good too—she hog-ties Dabney Coleman!—and while movie-making remained a side gig, she followed it up with the musical The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas opposite Burt Reynolds, and Rhinestone opposite Sly Stallone. During this peak stretch Parton also recorded “Islands in the Stream,” a Gibbs Brothers-penned tune, with Kenny Rogers.
In 1986, Parton took partial ownership of a pre-existing amusement park in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee and renamed it Dollywood. In addition to thrill rides and savory foods, the park includes a replica of the small cabin where Parton once lived in nearby Locust Ridge.
The following year, Parton, Emmylou Harris, and Linda Ronstadt joined forces to release Trio, a platinum-selling album of (mostly) cover songs, which also won Parton her fourth Grammy Award. Her 1989 album White Limozeen included the hit “Why’d You Come in Here Lookin’ Like That” and a bluegrass cover of REO Speedwagon’s “Time for Me to Fly,” closing out a monumental decade.
The 1990s saw a top-selling Christmas album and collaborations with other, oftentimes younger singers like Mary Chapin Carpenter and Billy Ray Cyrus. She contributed to the 1994 Red Hot + Country collection, part of an ongoing AIDS benefit campaign. In 1995 she created the Dolly Parton Imagination Library, in which any child under the age of 5 would be sent a free book each month, and involved herself in conservation efforts and has donated large sums of money to a hospital in the East Tennessee region. She has also been a vocal supporter of LGBT rights, and a $1 million donation she made to Vanderbilt University is said to have been key to the development of the Moderna COVID vaccine.
In later years, Parton remained a beacon of gratitude. She asked the state of Tennessee not to erect a statue in her honor. She told the Rock ‘N’ Roll Hall of Fame not to induct her over artists that made more sense. She even told Dan Rather that she didn’t blame Col. Tom Parker for trying to squeeze her on “I Will Always Love You.” Though some in country music rejected Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter album, Dolly Parton instead appeared on it—all while making jokes about her own cosmetic surgery.
In a 2025 podcast interview with Khloé Kardashian, Parton summed up her actions well. “The intent of the heart is what we’re judged by,” she said. “Our deeds and the intent of our heart.”
Original article appeared on Vanity Fair
