Country music superstar Dolly Parton has died at the age of 80, her family has announced.
The musician was best known for her genre-defining hits including 9 To 5, I Will Always Love You and Jolene.
US President Donald Trump announced flags would be lowered throughout America in Parton’s honour, posting on Truth Social “there has never been anyone like her”.
Nephew’s tribute
In a video shared on Instagram, Parton’s nephew said: “My name is Brian 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 added: “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 until now.”
Mr Seaver added: “It is an honour, an honour that is mixed with absolute pride and great sadness. But sadness lies with us, not with Dolly.
“Dolly has lived in the light and is in the arms of Jesus, surely met by Carl, her parents and countless others who have watched her and longed to meet her in the heavens.”
Parton’s husband Carl Dean died last year.
A life of music and legacy
Mr Seaver continued: “I first went on the road with Dolly as a kid, getting a taste of the road life in the early 1980s.
“Dolly opened doors not just for me but for her entire family to reach the potential we didn’t even know was possible.
“Dolly also opened doors for generations of singers, songwriters, musicians and dreamers from every walk of life and across every continent.
“By her example, we believed that anything is possible. She never saw a door she couldn’t open, and the doors she opened made and changed history.
“My family and I have shared a lifetime of beautiful memories with Dolly, but so have you.
“She has always been on your television, your record player, your CD and on your phone playlist, becoming an extended part of your family whether you liked it or not.
“Our family and the team she has entrusted with her legacy will work diligently to ensure her spirit will live with us forever.
“Dolly was a farmer, just like her daddy; he farmed the soil, she farmed songs and happiness.
“Dolly called me and said she wants to rest in a beautiful bed of plush cotton because after a life of wearing heavy rhinestones, she finally deserves to be comfortable and have some rest.”
Mr Seaver ended his statement, saying, “Rest in peace, Aunt Dolly — Aunt, Granny, Gigi. May God bless Dolly Parton, and may God bless you all. She will always love you.”
Career and health challenges
In May, the country star pulled out of a highly anticipated Las Vegas residency, which was due to begin in September.
She had already postponed her six-date run at The Colosseum Theatre at Caesars Palace from December 2025 to deal with “health challenges”.
In a video message at the time, she said she had been “responding really well to meds and treatments” and “improving every day”, citing a longtime struggle with kidney stones.
She added: “I’ve still got some healing to do, but I am on my way!”
The musician wrote I Will Always Love You – one of the defining love songs of the 20th century – as a goodbye to her former creative partner Porter Wagoner, who hired her to be his sidekick on The Porter Wagoner Show and helped her land a record deal.
The song became a blockbuster hit when Whitney Houston recorded a cover for the 1992 film The Bodyguard.
Parton’s own film career began in 1980 when she starred in 9 To 5 with Lily Tomlin and Jane Fonda.
Her theme song for the movie became her first number one single on the Hot 100 chart in the US.
Her other notable film appearances include The Best Little Whorehouse In Texas alongside Burt Reynolds, Rhinestone with Sylvester Stallone, and Steel Magnolias with Julia Roberts and Sally Field.
Her 1973 track Jolene is widely considered to be one of country music’s greatest songs.
It was covered by Beyonce on her 2024 album Cowboy Carter, which won the album of the year Grammy.
Early life and philanthropy
Parton was born in a single-room cabin in Locust Ridge, Tennessee, in 1946, as the fourth of 12 children.
She began her musical journey at the age of six, singing in the local church where her grandfather was the pastor.
By the age of 13, she had reached the pinnacle of country music success – an appearance at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, Tennessee.
Over the course of her career, which spanned more than 60 years, Parton sold more than 100 million records worldwide, and wrote more than 3,000 songs, including hits Coat Of Many Colours and Joshua.
She was a savvy businesswoman, with an empire including a theme park to her name, but also a pioneering philanthropist.
Her Imagination Library, a book-gifting programme devoted to inspiring a love of reading in children, has given more than 270 million books to children in need.
The programme was started by Parton in 1995, inspired by her father, who could not read or write.
She was also a supporter of a number of charities for black and LGBTQ+ communities, as well as the Barbara Davis Center for Childhood Diabetes, Save the Music Foundation and the Boot Campaign.
In 2020 she donated one million dollars (£733,000) to coronavirus research at Vanderbilt University, which helped fund Moderna’s Covid-19 vaccine and in 2022 received the Carnegie Medal of Philanthropy, which honours innovative philanthropists.
She opened her theme park, Dollywood, in 1986.
The location in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, has hosted a theme park since July 1961. It is currently the biggest ticketed tourist attraction in Tennessee and the largest provider of jobs in Sevier County.
Broadway musical and final years
A musical about Parton’s life, Dolly: A True Original Musical, is due to begin previews on Broadway later this year before opening night in January 2027, on what would have been Parton’s 81st birthday.
The show was the passion project of Parton’s final years.
Last month she said in a statement: “My whole life has been a musical. A grand ole opera really and I can’t wait to present it to you on Broadway. I hope you enjoy watching as much as I’ve enjoyed livin’ it.”
The show features new music from Parton as well as her classic hits like I Will Always Love You, Jolene, Coat Of Many Colours and 9 to 5.
