Dolly Parton — the queen of country music, a philanthropist of staggering generosity, and one of the LGBTQ community’s most steadfast allies — died peacefully on August 25, 2026, in Nashville. She was 80 years old.
The news was announced by her nephew, Bryan Seaver, in a video message. No cause of death has been released; her family shared that she “died peacefully” and that a small private service will be held for immediate family. They have asked that, in lieu of flowers, donations be made to Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, the literacy program she founded in 1995 that has since distributed more than 200 million free books to children around the world.
Just four days before her death, on August 21, Parton had shared a health update, saying, “I still have so many things I want to achieve.” It was a fitting final statement from a woman who never stopped working, never stopped giving, and never stopped showing up for the people who needed her most.
From the Smoky Mountains to the World
Born on January 19, 1946, in a one-room cabin in Locust Ridge, Tennessee, Dolly Rebecca Parton grew up in poverty as the fourth of twelve children. She wrote her first song at age five, performed on local radio by age ten, and moved to Nashville the day after she graduated high school. What followed was a career that defies summary — over 100 million records sold, 49 studio albums, 110 charted singles, 11 Grammy Awards (including the 2011 Lifetime Achievement Grammy), and 55 Grammy nominations. She wrote “Jolene” and “I Will Always Love You” on the same day. The same day.
Watch: Dolly Parton — “Jolene” (1973)
Watch: Dolly Parton — “9 to 5” (1980)
Watch: Dolly Parton — “I Will Always Love You” (Live at the Grand Ole Opry)
She conquered film (9 to 5, Steel Magnolias, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas), built a theme park (Dollywood, which employs thousands in her home region of East Tennessee), and became a cultural icon whose wigs, rhinestones, and irrepressible wit made her instantly recognizable to anyone on the planet with a television.
“Some Are Preachers, Some Are Gay”
But for the LGBTQ community, Dolly Parton was something more than a country star. She was family — and she said so long before it was safe to say so in the world of country music.
In 1991, tucked away on her album Eagle When She Flies, Dolly released a song called “Family.” The lyrics included: “Some are preachers, some are gay / Some are addicts, drunks and strays / But not a one is turned away when it’s family.” It was a quiet, defiant statement of solidarity with queer families at the height of the AIDS crisis — not from a pop star in New York or Los Angeles, but from a country singer in Nashville.
She backed marriage equality as early as 2009, years before the Supreme Court legalized it. When talk show host Joy Behar suggested that her Tennessee roots would make her unsupportive, Dolly replied: “I always say, ‘Sure, why can’t they get married? They should suffer like the rest of us do.’”
In 2005, she wrote “Travelin’ Thru” for the film Transamerica, which starred Felicity Huffman as a trans woman on a road trip. The song was nominated for an Oscar and became a queer anthem. “Some people are blind or ignorant, and you can’t be that prejudiced and hateful and go through this world and still be happy,” Dolly said about what motivated her to write it. “It’s alright to be who you are.”
Watch: Dolly Parton — “Travelin’ Thru” from Transamerica (2005)
When Dollywood Turned a Shirt Inside Out, Dolly Turned It Back
In 2011, a lesbian visitor to Dollywood’s Splash Country water park was told to turn her marriage equality t-shirt inside out before entering a ride. The story made national news. Dolly didn’t hesitate — she issued a statement that was unmistakably hers: “I am truly sorry for the hurt or embarrassment regarding the gay and lesbian t-shirt incident at Dollywood’s Splash Country recently. Everyone knows of my personal support of the gay and lesbian community. Dollywood is a family park and all families are welcome.”
When anti-trans bathroom bills began sweeping the country in 2016, Dolly weighed in with characteristic directness: “I think everybody should be treated with respect. I don’t judge people… I just know, if I have to pee, I’m gon’ pee, wherever it’s got to be.”
In 2017, she called out her fellow Christians for judging the LGBTQ community: “If you’re the fine Christian that you think you are, why are you judging people? That’s God’s job. We’re not God, we’re not judges, we’re supposed to love one another.”
And in 2023, as anti-trans legislation mounted across the country — including in her home state of Tennessee — she doubled down: “Trans people cannot help being trans any more than I can help being Dolly Parton. I just want everybody to be treated good.” She noted that her own circle of employees and family included transgender people, gay people, and lesbians: “I know and love them all, and I do not judge.”
That same year, when Texas drag performer Brigitte Bandit was fighting anti-drag legislation in court, Dolly sent her a signed, bejeweled guitar. It was a small gesture, perhaps, but perfectly Dolly — she saw someone fighting for the right to perform, and she sent her a guitar.
“Coat of Many Colors” as Queer Anthem
It’s worth noting that Dolly’s most personal song, “Coat of Many Colors,” has long been embraced by the LGBTQ community as an anthem about being different. The song tells the story of young Dolly’s mother sewing her a coat from rags, and the bullying she endured at school for being poor — but also the pride and love her mother stitched into every seam.
Watch: Dolly Parton — “Coat of Many Colors” (Live)
“One is only poor only if they choose to be,” Dolly sang, and the message resonated with anyone who had ever been made to feel less than for being exactly who they are.
When she joined TikTok in December 2022, Dolly’s first post celebrated her queer fans — a montage of drag queens and trans performers dressed as her, including Dylan Mulvaney and several Drag Race queens. “You all are so creative,” she wrote. It was Dolly in miniature: noticing the people who loved her, and loving them right back.
The Philanthropist
It’s impossible to talk about Dolly Parton without talking about her generosity. The Imagination Library, which mails free books to children from birth to age five, began in Sevier County, Tennessee, and now operates in five countries. In 2020, she donated $1 million to COVID-19 vaccine research at Vanderbilt University — funding that directly supported the development of the Moderna vaccine. She gave quietly and consistently, and she gave from the heart, never from a desire for recognition.
When asked why she gave so much, her answer was simple: “I don’t let any of that go to my head. It goes straight to my heart.”
What She Leaves Behind
Dolly Parton leaves behind a body of work that shaped American music, a philanthropic legacy that changed millions of lives, and a record of LGBTQ allyship that spans more than three decades. In a genre that has not always been kind to queer people, she stood up early, stood up often, and never wavered.
She once said, “The way I see it, if you want the rainbow, you gotta put up with the rain.” Dolly put up with the rain for all of us, and she left the world a little more colorful than she found it.
Rest in peace, Dolly. We will always love you.
In lieu of flowers, the Parton family has requested donations to Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library at imaginationlibrary.com.
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