1946-present
Dolly Parton Now: New Album Rockstar Now Out
Dolly Parton, 77, is officially a rock star. Her first rock music album—appropriately titled Rockstar—came out November 17. “I can’t tell you how proud I am of the ‘Rockstar’ album and I can’t tell you how happy I am that it’s finally here to be released!” Parton posted on social media just after midnight.
Listen to Rockstar on Amazon Music, Apple Music, or Spotify.
Created in part as a response to her induction to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame last year, the album features covers of famous rock songs, as well as collaborations with many artists from the genre. Some of the covers included are Parton’s versions of Prince’s “Purple Rain,” Miley Cyrus’ “Wrecking Ball,” The Rolling Stones’ “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction,” and Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven.” Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Elton John, Sting, Joan Jett, Steven Tyler, and Pat Benatar are among the artists Parton teamed up with on Rockstar. “I really had a wonderful time working with all these iconic artists on the record and all these iconic musicians,” Parton also shared in her post.
Who Is Dolly Parton?
Country music icon and actor Dolly Parton initially found success with country star Porter Wagoner in the 1960s, before embarking on a solo career marked by hit songs like “Joshua,” “Jolene,” “The Bargain Store,” “I Will Always Love You,” “Here You Come Again,” “9 to 5,” and “Islands in the Stream.” A highly skilled singer-songwriter known for thoughtful narratives and distinctive vocals, she has won many major awards, including 10 Grammys, and was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1999. She has also starred in the movies 9 to 5, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, and Steel Magnolias. In 1986, she opened her Dollywood theme park, now part of a network of attractions. Parton continues to record and tour regularly.
Quick Facts
FULL NAME: Dolly Rebecca Parton
BORN: January 19, 1946
BIRTHPLACE: Locust Ridge, Tennessee
SPOUSE: Carl Dean (1966-present)
CHILDREN: None
ASTROLOGICAL SIGN: Capricorn
Early Life
Dolly Rebecca Parton was born on January 19, 1946, in Locust Ridge, Tennessee, to Robert Lee Parton, a sharecropper and farmer, and Avie Lee Caroline. Parton grew up poor in rural Appalachia. She was the fourth of 12 children, all of whom her mother delivered before turning 35. Parton said of her mother’s decision to name her Dolly: “I guess my mama knew I was going to want to be a star,” according to People. Parton described her family as “dirt poor,” and money was always an issue for them.
Parton’s first exposure to music came from family members, including her mother, who sang and played guitar. At an early age, she also learned about music while performing in church. She was writing songs before she knew how to read, according to People. Parton received her first guitar from a relative and soon began to pen her own tunes.
At age 10, she started performing professionally, appearing on local television and radio shows in Knoxville, roughly an hour from her home. Parton made her Grand Ole Opry debut three years later. Set on a career in music, she then moved to Nashville the day after finishing high school in 1964.
Early Songs: “Jolene” and “I Will Always Love You”
Parton’s singing career really started to take off in 1967. Around this time, she partnered with country singer Porter Wagoner on The Porter Wagoner Show. Parton and Wagoner became a popular duo, and the pair recorded a slew of country hits together. Much was made of her shapely curves, petite 5-foot-tall stature, and warm personality, which to some people belied a thoughtful, visionary artist with a strong business sense. Since her early career, Parton has protected the publishing rights to her catalog of songs, which has earned her millions in royalties.
“As soon as I could, I started my own publishing company, got my own record label. I think it’s important, if you can, to keep all of your goods close to home where you can control them and know what’s happening with them.”—Dolly Parton
Her work with Wagoner also helped Parton land a contract with RCA Records. After having had several charting singles, Parton scored her first No. 1 country hit in 1971 with “Joshua,” a bluegrass-inspired track about two solitary figures who find love. More No. 1 hits followed, including “Jolene,” a haunting 1973 single in which a woman begs another beautiful woman not to take her man, and “I Will Always Love You,” a 1974 tribute to Wagoner as the two parted ways professionally. Elvis Presley wished to record a cover of the song, but Parton refused when Presley’s infamous manager, Colonel Tom Parker, tried to insist she sign half the song’s publishing rights over to Presley.
Other country hits from this era included the ethereal “Love Is Like a Butterfly,” the provocative “The Bargain Store,” the spiritual “The Seeker,” and the rollicking “All I Can Do.” For the range of her compelling work, she won the Country Music Association Award for Female Vocalist in 1975 and 1976.
In 1977, Parton had her first crossover smash with the bouncy, bittersweet ode to a returning lover, “Here You Come Again.” The song reached the top of the country charts as well as No. 3 on the pop charts and also marked the singer-songwriter’s first Grammy Award, for Best Female Country Vocal Performance. More emotionally-driven No. 1 country hits followed including “It’s All Wrong, But It’s Alright,” “Heartbreaker,” and “Starting Over Again,” a ballad written by disco star Donna Summer.
Over the years, Parton has enjoyed many successful collaborations. In 1983, she scored another major smash with “Islands in the Stream,” her duet with Kenny Rogers. Four years later, she recorded the Grammy Award-winning album Trio with Emmylou Harris and Linda Ronstadt.
Movies: 9 to 5 and More
Parton perhaps reached the apex of her mainstream success in the 1980s. She made her film debut in the 1980 comedy hit 9 to 5, starring alongside Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin. She played a secretary who, along with her two co-workers, plots against her egotistical and sexist boss, in a movie that raised awareness of workplace discrimination. In addition to co-starring in 9 to 5, Parton also contributed to its soundtrack. The title song, with one of the most memorable opening lines in popular music history, proved to be another No. 1 hit for Parton on both the pop and country charts. For “9 to 5,” Parton also took home two Grammy Awards—for Best Country Song and Best Female Country Vocal Performance—and earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Song.
Parton next starred with Burt Reynolds and Dom DeLuise in the musical movie The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas in 1982, which helped to introduce a new generation to her song “I Will Always Love You.” In 1984, Parton starred along with Sylvester Stallone in the musical comedy Rhinestone, portraying a country singer who tries to turn an obnoxious New York City cab driver (played by Stallone) into a successful country singer.
Over the years, Parton has continued to work as an actor in an array of movies and TV projects that include Steel Magnolias (1989), Straight Talk (1992), Unlikely Angel (1996), Frank McKlusky, C.I. (2002), and Joyful Noise (2012), having also hosted her own variety show in both 1976 and 1987-88.
Dollywood and Other Business Ventures
The 1980s also saw Parton branch out in another new direction. Investing her considerable earnings into a variety of business ventures, she opened her own theme park called Dollywood in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, in 1986. The amusement park remains a popular travel destination to this day. Located near her hometown, Parton said she invested in the park because “I always thought that if I made it big or got successful at what I had started out to do, I wanted to come back to my part of the country and do something great, something that would bring a lot of jobs into this area.” Today, more than three million people visit Dollywood annually.
Parton is the co-owner of The Dollywood Company, which owns and operates a number of properties and entertainment venues in addition to the Dollywood theme park. Among them are the waterpark Dollywood’s Splash Country, the dinner attraction Dolly Parton’s Stampede, the Dream More Resort and Spa, Dollywood’s Smoky Mountain Cabins, and more. It’s estimated Parton’s 50 percent stake in the Dollywood theme park alone is worth about $165 million.
Later Music and Rockstar Album
In 1992, Whitney Houston recorded Parton’s song “I Will Always Love You” for the film The Bodyguard. Houston’s version catapulted Parton’s song into a new stratosphere of popularity, with the single sitting atop the pop charts for 14 weeks and becoming one of the best-selling singles of all time. “When Whitney did it, I got all the money for the publishing and for the writing, and I bought a lot of cheap wigs,” she told Anderson Cooper when he asked her how she spent her royalties from the song.
The next year, Parton teamed up with Loretta Lynn and Tammy Wynette for the album Honky Tonk Angels. Parton revisited her now-signature song “I Will Always Love You” in 1995 as a duet with Vince Gill. Next, Parton explored the music of her Appalachian roots with The Grass Is Blue (1999) with a little help from Alison Krauss and Patty Loveless. The record won a Grammy—Parton’s sixth—for Best Bluegrass Album in 1999. That same year, Parton was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame and won another Grammy in 2001 for the song “Shine” off her album Little Sparrow.
Continuing to write and record, Parton released Backwoods Barbie in 2008. The album featured two country singles, “Better Get to Livin’” and “Jesus & Gravity.” In 2011, Parton released the album Better Day, which included recordings by Parton of songs she previously wrote for the Broadway adaptation of the 9 to 5 movie. In August 2020, Parton released A Holly Dolly Christmas, her first holiday album in 30 years, which featured guest appearances by singers like Michael Bublé, Billy Ray Cyrus, Miley Cyrus, and Willie Nelson.
In November 2022, Parton announced plans to release her first rock music album—appropriately titled Rockstar—partially in response to her nomination to the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame earlier that year. The album released on November 17, 2023, and features covers of famous rock songs, as well as collaborations with many artists from the genre. Among the covers are Parton’s versions of Prince’s “Purple Rain,” Miley Cyrus’ “Wrecking Ball,” The Rolling Stones’ “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction,” and Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven.” Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Elton John, Sting, Lizzo, and Pat Benatar are among the artists who appear in tracks on the new album.
Net Worth
Parton has a projected net worth of $650 million, which includes profits from albums, singles, movies, Dollywood theme park, and other business ventures. She earned $20 million in royalties from Whitney Houston’s cover of “I Will Always Love You” alone. Part of her wealth derives from Parton’s insistence on owning her entire song catalog, which Forbes estimates is worth about $150 million.
Awards
With a career spanning seven decades, Parton has won a multitude of awards and lifetime honors. She was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1999, the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2001, and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2022. Parton initially declined her Rock & Roll Hall nomination because her music wasn’t part of the rock genre and she didn’t “feel I have earned that right,” but she later accepted after learning other non-rock musicians had been inducted and that fans help vote for inductees.
In 2006, Parton received special recognition for her lifetime contributions to the arts as one of five artists feted at the annual Kennedy Center Honors. At the 50th Annual CMA Awards in 2016, Parton was honored as the recipient of the Willie Nelson Lifetime Achievement Award.
A decorated Grammy winner, Parton has taken home 10 trophies, as well as the organization’s Lifetime Achievement Award in 2011. Three of her songs—“I Will Always Love You,” “Jolene,” and “Coat of Many Colors”—have been enshrined in the Grammy Hall of Fame. Parton received another Grammy tribute during the February 2019 ceremony, with artists like Katy Perry, Miley Cyrus, and Kacey Musgraves joining her on stage to sing a medley of her hits. In November 2023, Parton received her 54th Grammy nomination; her single “The Last Thing On My Mind” will compete for Best Country Solo Performance at the 2024 Grammy Awards in February.
Later in 2019, Parton joined a televised special to celebrate her 50th anniversary as a member of the Grand Ole Opry. The previous year’s edition of the Guinness World Records recognized Parton for her accomplishments of most decades with a Top 20 hit on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart (six) and most hits on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart by a female artist (107). In 2021, Time magazine named her to its annual Time 100 list of the most influential people.
Parton has two Academy Award nominations, both for Best Original Song, to her name. She picked up her first with “9 to 5” in 1980 and her second for “Travelin’ Thru” from the 2005 movie Transamerica.
Husband and Goddaughter Miley Cyrus
Parton has been married to Carl Dean since 1966. The couple met at a Nashville laundromat, the Wishy Washy, two years earlier. On their 50th anniversary, the two renewed their vows. “My husband is not one who wants to be just thrown out there,” she has said about Dean. “He’s very private, and I’ve always respected that for him and about him.”
Parton doesn’t have any children. Alluding to her philanthropy work with children, Parton said during a 2017 interview on the Today show: “God has a plan for everything. I think it probably was his plan for me not to have kids so everybody’s kids could be mine. And they are now.” Parton is the godmother of pop singer and actor Miley Cyrus.
Imagination Library and Other Philanthropy
Parton has worked with charitable organizations in support of numerous causes over the years and established her own Dollywood Foundation in 1996. With the goal of improving literacy among young children, she created Dolly’s Imagination Library, a program that donates more than 10 million books to children annually. “They call me the Book Lady. That’s what the little kids say when they get their books in the mail,” she told The Washington Post in 2006. “They think I bring them and put them in the mailbox myself, like Peter Rabbit or something.”
Though many of her charitable contributions are anonymous, Parton has used her success to give back to her community by providing scholarships for children, donating thousands to hospitals, and providing technology and supplies for classrooms.
After the town of Gaitlinburg, Tennessee, and other towns near the Great Smoky Mountains National Park were devastated by wildfires in 2016, Parton helped raise $12.5 million to support the victims and help rebuild the area. She advised Oprah and Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson when they launched a similar after in the wake of the 2023 Maui fires.
Parton donated $1 million to the Vanderbilt University Medical Center during the COVID-19 pandemic, which helped support the early development of the Moderna vaccine. After the vaccine was available, Parton filmed herself receiving the shot and publicly urged her fans to get vaccinated as well, adapting her famous song “Jolene” with the words “Vaccine, vaccine, vaccine, vaccine.”
Books
Parton has written and released several books, including the 1994 memoir Dolly: My Life and Other Unfinished Business and the 2012 book Dream More: Celebrate the Dreamer in You. In 2022, she partnered with best-selling author James Patterson to co-write the thriller novel Run, Rose, Run, about an aspiring country singer.
Dolly Parton’s Coat of Many Colors, a television movie biopic about the singer’s childhood, aired in 2015. It starred Alyvia Alyn Lind as young Dolly and Sugarland star Jennifer Nettles as Parton’s mother. A two-hour documentary Biography: Dolly, aired on A&E in 2020, tracing Parton’s extraordinary journey from her childhood spent in poverty and early days in Nashville to her multiple hit songs.
Quotes
- I’m not offended by dumb blonde jokes because I know that I’m not dumb. I also know I’m not blonde.
- As soon as I could, I started my own publishing company, got my own record label. I think it’s important, if you can, to keep all of your goods close to home where you can control them and know what’s happening with them.
- When I write, I don’t try to be commercial. I just write what I feel and hope that it might turn out to be a “Jolene” or an “I Will Always Love You.” You can’t really purposefully try to do that. If they’re good, they’re good, and if they’re mediocre, they’re mediocre. I got a lot of them, too.
- I think that I’ve been at this so long that [my audience has] come to know me, they know I’m not judgmental. They know I like everybody. I want to be accepted myself, and I not only accept, but celebrate the difference in everyone.
- I love to think of myself as an entertainer. I make things look like I’m better than I am, because I like to entertain. Even that tongue-in-cheek kind of stuff—when I say, “I know it so well I can play it backwards,” and I turn myself backwards—that’s corny as hell. But it works!
- My husband is not one who wants to be just thrown out there. He’s very private, and I’ve always respected that for him and about him. And so, we just try to live our lives. Everybody is not entitled to every single thing you do and thought you think, although I do share as much of my life as I possibly can. I’m not holding back any information, but there are just some things that are sacred and private.
- I look just like the girls next door... if you happen to live next door to an amusement park.
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