MIAMI.- American country music star Dolly Parton, remembered for hits like Jolenedied at the age of 80, his family reported this Tuesday. The singer-songwriter had been dealing with ongoing health issues, leading her to cancel performances and shows in May and postpone a Las Vegas residency in September.
Celebrities and artists were quick to take to social media to express their condolences over the loss of the country diva.
“Dolly Parton had the ability to make everyone feel special, seen and welcomed, like they were old friends,” he posted. Kelly Clarkson on Instagram. “I will miss his heart and his voice, as millions surely will. What an incredible gift and talent he had and continues to have, with an amazing artistic catalog that he has left us all.”
“I will certainly miss his laugh, his jokes and his way of being,” he wrote. Dionne Warwick on Instagram. “Rest in peace, my friend.”
“I am devastated,” she wrote. Keke Palmer on Instagram. “Really”.
“I’m very sad right now. One of my favorite memories is filming the ‘Carol and Dolly’ special in Nashville,” the comedian shared Carol Burnett on Instagram. “We filmed Thanksgiving week and Dolly made individual turkey dinners for each of us, cooked by herself. We were a family. That’s who she was.”
Other tributes came from Lily Tomlin, Bette Midler, Patton Oswalt, Andy Cohen, Kristin Chenoweth, Sarah Jessica Parker, Kelly Osbourne, Brené Brown, the Jackson 5’s Instagram account, the late Leslie Jordan’s Instagram account, Casey Rose Wilson, Holly Robinson Peete, Jill Wagner, Katharine McPhee Foster and The Muppets.
Prolific career
Parton, who grew up poor in Tennessee, headed to the country music capital, Nashville, the day after graduating from high school.
In 1967, at the age of 21, he was already among the most recognized figures in American music thanks to Porter Wagoner’s country music television show, which brought his voice and face to millions of homes in the United States.
His prolific career spanned some six decades, during which he wrote some 3,000 songs, including the iconic ballad “I Will Always Love You,” which became an international hit performed by Whitney Houston. He is also remembered for the soundtrack 9 to 5.
With 49 studio albums and more than 100 compilation and collaboration albums, she earned the title “queen of country music.”
Parton was instrumental in defining the way a woman can shape her image in a predominantly male industry. It became a monument of music in the United States whose songs have been covered by artists such as Shania Twain, Sinéad O’Connor and The White Stripes.
Her figure, her hairstyles and her outfits helped write her legend. And he fought sexism in his own way: without violence, taking advantage of his warm side and his business sense to amass one of the largest fortunes on the American music scene.
