Country Icon and Actress Dolly Parton Dies at 80

Dolly Parton, the country music icon behind hits like "Jolene" and "I Will Always Love You" before becoming a movie star with 9 to 5 (1980) and Steel Magnolias (1989), has died at 80.

The news was confirmed by Variety, which did not directly cite a cause of death. Since mid-2025, however, Parton had been canceling a series of shows and public appearances due to unspecified health issues.

Born on January 19, 1946, in the small town of Pittman Center, Tennessee, Parton began performing as a child and recorded her first single, "Puppy Love," at age 13.

After a period behind the scenes, writing songs for major country names in the 1960s (Skeeter Davis and Hank Williams Jr. among them), her first solo album arrived with Hello, I'm Dolly, released in 1967, which produced the modest hits "Dumb Blonde" and "Something Fishy."

After being taken under the wing of Porter Wagoner and becoming a regular on his TV variety show, she recorded a string of duets with the host that became hits in the country community — but Parton's solo work continued to be overlooked.

It wasn't until 1971 that "Joshua" and "Coat of Many Colors" gave her her first solo #1s on the charts. The latter, in particular, became one of the singer's signature songs, cementing her extravagant image — towering blonde wig, rhinestone-studded outfits — in pop culture.

"Jolene" arrived in 1973 to cement that success. The song, told from the point of view of a woman losing her beloved to another, who is vividly described in the lyrics, became a global hit, earning covers by Olivia Newton-John, The White Stripes, Miley Cyrus, Beyoncé and many other artists over the years.

The following year, "I Will Always Love You" became another major country chart success for Parton. But it was Whitney Houston's version, recorded in 1992 for the film The Bodyguard, that turned the composition into a full-blown pop phenomenon — Parton herself admitted in interviews that she liked Houston's version more than her own.

In the years that followed, the singer kept racking up hits with "Heartbreaker" (1978), "Old Flames (Can't Hold a Candle to You)" (1980), "Islands in the Stream" (1983, a duet with Kenny Rogers) and "Why'd You Come in Here Lookin' Like That" (1989), among others.

Parton won her first Grammy in 1979 for the album Here You Come Again. She would go on to win 10 more, most recently in 2021 for the recording of the gospel hit "There Was Jesus" alongside Zach Williams.

Albums exploring other styles, such as bluegrass (The Grass is Blue, from 1999, also won a Grammy) and rock n' roll (Hungry Again, from 1998, and Rockstar, from 2023), also established Parton as a respected artist across genres.

Starting in the 1980s, the artist also began exploring acting opportunities. Her big-screen debut came with 9 to 5 (1980), a comedy co-starring Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin about employees taking revenge on a sexist boss.

A massive box office success, 9 to 5 also spawned the hit "9 to 5," which became another of Parton's signature songs and earned her an Oscar nomination for Best Original Song — she would be nominated again in 2005 for "Travelin' Thru," from the film Transamerica, and would receive the honorary Jean Hersholt award in 2025 for her humanitarian efforts.

Parton's acting career continued with The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (1982), Rhinestone (1984), Steel Magnolias (1989), Straight Talk (1992), Frank McKlusky, C.I. (2002) and Joyful Noise (2011).

The singer was also involved in TV, but as a producer—she was one of the people responsible for bringing Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997-2003) to television, and she created the anthology Dolly Parton's Heartstrings (2019), with episodes based on her biggest hits.

Parton was also a pioneer in licensing products using her name and likeness, and opened the Dollywood theme park/resort in 1986. It is currently the biggest tourist attraction in the state of Tennessee, drawing more than 3 million visitors a year.

The artist was married to Carl Dean, owner of an asphalt paving company in Nashville, from 1966 until his death in 2025. Dean always avoided the spotlight and was rarely seen with his wife at professional engagements.

The two never had children, but they raised several of Parton's siblings and nieces and nephews together on the ranch they shared in Brentwood, Tennessee, since 1972.