A towering figure in American music, Dolly Parton has died at the age of 80, ending a career that helped define country music and stretched far beyond the stage.
Ms Parton’s representatives said the singer died “after bravely facing a brief battle with cancer”.
Confirming the news in a statement to US media, her publicist Marcel Pariseau said: “Dolly departed her Earthly life today at the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center surrounded by loved ones.”
Her death was first made public yesterday by her nephew, Bryan Seaver, who posted an announcement on social media.
In the video, Dolly Parton’s nephew said: “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.
“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.”
He continued: “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 late husband), her parents and countless others who have watched her and longed to meet her in the heavens.”
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An interview published last week showed Parton reflecting on how she put her own health on hold while caring for her husband before his death last year.
She had also discussed continuing health concerns after she was forced to pull out of an appearance at Dollywood earlier this month.
Watch: Dolly Parton on The Late Late Show in October 2002
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Parton missed the opening night of a new attraction at her Tennessee theme park after experiencing dizziness and dehydration, with doctors advising her against travel.
Speaking to People after the cancelled appearance, she said: “I am dealing with some health issues that I just didn’t pay attention to when I was watching over Carl.”
Dolly Parton was prolific in a career spanning six decades during which she penned some 3,000 songs, including the iconic ballad I Will Always Love You, which became an international hit for Whitney Houston
Known worldwide for songs such as Jolene, Parton was married to Carl Thomas Dean for almost 60 years until his death in March 2025, aged 82.
Parton was prolific in a career spanning six decades during which she penned some 3,000 songs, including the iconic ballad I Will Always Love You, which became an international hit for Whitney Houston.
Across her recording life she released 49 studio albums, along with more than 100 compilation and collaboration albums, helping cement her status as the ‘Queen of Country Music’.
Her list of awards included 11 Grammy wins, among them the Lifetime Achievement Award in 2011.
Parton also became a familiar face on film, with her best-known role coming in her big-screen debut alongside Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin in the 1980 comedy 9 to 5.
The theme song, written by Parton, won two Grammys and was nominated for the Oscar for Best Original Song.
Dolly Parton as Doralee Rhodes in 9 to 5 (1980)
In 2006, she received another Oscar nomination for Best Original Song, this time for Travelin’ Thru from the film Transamerica.
Her other film credits included Rhinestone and Steel Magnolias.
On television, she appeared in numerous specials and TV movies, and her series credits included The Simpsons, Reba, and Hannah Montana.
Beyond entertainment, Parton was widely known as a champion of children’s literacy, while her writing as an author ranged across fiction, memoir, cookery, and children’s books.
Flowers and candles cover Dolly Parton’s star on The Music City Walk of Fame in Nashville, Tennessee
Parton received the National Medal of Arts in the US in 2005 and was among the honourees at the Kennedy Center Honors in 2006.
In 2025, Oscars organiser The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences honoured her with the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award.
“By her example, we believed that anything was possible. She never saw a door she couldn’t open, and the doors she opened made and changed history,” her nephew Bryan Seaver said.
Tributes pour in for Dolly Parton
Paul McCartney paid tribute to the country star in a post on Instagram describing Ms Parton as a “magnificent star” and “wonderful woman” who he met at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, Tennessee, where Dolly Parton first appeared at age 13.
He said: “She was so bubbly and full of life it is difficult to take in the news that she has passed.
“Her songwriting, her singing and her philanthropy were unrivaled in the world of country music and it is hard to imagine living in a world without Dolly.”
US President Donald Trump ordered flags to be lowered for a week in honour of the late singer
Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger honoured Ms Parton in a heartfelt tribute on Instagram including a photograph of the pair together.
He said: “What a wonderful songwriter and singer Dolly was. She brought so many people together, we will all miss her so much.”
Singer Beyonce, in a statement published on her website, said, “Dolly, you were the barometer. The north star. Bold and brilliant. Talented and tenacious. You taught so many lessons on how to be uniquely oneself. I am grateful for your art, your heart, your generosity, your humor, your entrepreneurship.
“I’m honored that I had the privilege to work with you. I will treasure that forever. Thank you for your profound impact on the world. You are an angel who has made this world a happier place because of your joyful art. You are truly one of one. Rest peacefully.”
Fans pay tribute to Dolly Parton at her home in Brentwood, Tennessee
US popstar Taylor Swift said, “a world without Dolly doesn’t feel possible, real, or right,”
“Because of the eternally generous way she spent her time on this earth and the countless lives she changed for the better, her legacy will be an everlasting one.”
Flowers laid beside a mural of country singer Dolly Parton in Nashville
TV presenter Oprah Winfrey said one of her fondest memories with Dolly Parton was “having a hoot and a holler while wearing Bob Mackie gowns on her show Dolly”.
Winfrey added: “This girl from the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee dreamed a life and then lived a life bigger than she could have ever imagined, giving so generously to others in ways we saw and ways we didn’t.”
Dolly Parton and Oprah Winfrey pictured together in 1987
Former US secretary of state Hillary Clinton said, “Dolly Parton did all the good she could, for all the people she could, for as long as she ever could… Dolly, we’ll miss your great heart.”
Singer Cyndi Lauper said: “It’s hard for me to imagine the world without Dolly. Dolly’s heart was as big as her talent.”She was not only a great singer/song writer/actress/TV star, Dolly also lived her art. She used her art, her fame and ‌her money to help so many people.”
The Empire State Building was lit up pink to honour Dolly Parton
Source: Press Association, AFP
