July 30: Exclusive: 'Hello, I'm Dolly' Workshops In Nashville With Hilty Although no official announcements have been made and it was apparently supposed to be secret, a source has disclosed exclusively to Dollymania.net that Dolly and her creative team held workshops of her Hello, I'm Dolly Broadway musical in Nashville a couple of weeks ago. And while no casting news has been revealed, the source said Megan Hilty, who originated Dolly's role of Doralee in the Broadway adaptation of 9 To 5: The Musical, participated. While those who workshop a show before a Broadway premiere don't necessarily transfer to the final version, sometimes they do, but that could mean she was playing Dolly in the workshop.
HBO's 'Penguin' Will Be Dolly Stan The new The Penguin series on HBO will feature the lead character as a Dolly stan, the creators have revealed. A key part of Collin Farrell's character, Oz, or The Penguin, will be a huge Dolly fan and that fact will be used in part to show the character's respect for women and inspiration from his mother, Slash Film reports here from an interview with creator Lauren LeFranc in Esquire.
Dolly On Leaked Post Malone Guest List Dolly will apparently appear on Post Malone's upcoming country album, F 1 Trillion, according to a leak. Target last week mistakenly posted a cover image with its pre-order page for the vinyl version of the album which listed the project's guest artists which included Dolly, Lainey Wilson, Brad Paisley, Hank Williams Jr., Tim McGraw, Jelly Roll, and Chris Stapleton, among others. In addition, Malone wore a "Dolly Parton Fan Club" cap in the music video for the album's single with Luke Combs, "Guy For That." The album comes out Aug. 16. Pre-order it here.
'Gonna Be You (Nashville)' Released Then Pulled Dolly has recorded a second version of the Diane Warren song "Gonna Be You" with several current female country artists. She had led the pop star version for the soundtrack of the Lily Tomlin and Jane Fonda film 80 For Brady with Belinda Carlisle, Cyndi Lauper, Gloria Estefan and Debbie Harry. The new version is led by Callie Twisselman with Jessie James Decker, Dolly and Maddie & Tae. It was released on YouTube here, Facebook, and download services on Friday but deleted from all outlets less than 24 hours later, suggesting it was mistakenly distributed early. No word on when it will be out again.
Dolly, Luke Williams Get Dove Nomination Dolly and Luke Williams received a Dove Award nomination last week for Bluegrass/Country/Roots Recorded Song of the Year for their second duet, "Lookin' For You". It is her seventh career nomination. Dolly was previously nominated in the same category for "Stand By The River" with Dottie Rambo, "When I Get Where I'm Going" with Brad Paisley, and last year for "In The Sweet By and By" as well as a songwriter for "Daddy Was An Old Time Preacher Man" by Rhonda Vincent with Volume Five. She and Williams had previously been nominated for Pop Recorded Song of the Year for "There Was Jesus," and she and King & Country won Video of the Year for "God Only Knows." Winners will be revealed on TBN Oct. 4.
Diablo Cody Says '9 To 5' Sequel Z Vs. Boomers No word on casting or plans for the original actresses to resume their roles yet, but one promising piece of information is Diablo Cody, who just completed the script for the 9 To 5 sequel being produced by Jennifer Anniston says the primary focus will be comedy from the conflict between Gen Z employees and their boomer bosses, according to Entertainment Weeklyhere.
Dollywood Sees Major Flood A torrential downpour on Sunday resulted in the worst flash flooding Dollywood has ever seen. One minor injury was reported, several cars in the parking lot were flooded, and customers had to wade through ankle-deep water through most of the park, knee-deep water in some parts, and even waist-deep in a couple of spots. Part of the public road at the entrance reportedly collapsed. Employees and first responders led guests to safety and helped them exit the park. News of the flooding reached all types of national media outlets, including even The New York Timeshere. Crews worked overnight to clean up the damage and the park opened by noon Monday. (Coincidentally, your webmaster had visited the park on vacation last week and left just a couple of hours before the storm hit. A gallery of the exhibits in the new multi-building Dolly Parton Experience museum has been added to my Facebook page in an album here.)
'Step By Step' To Rise To No. 13 AC "Step By Step" by Dolly and Natalie Grant will rise two in Tuesday's charts to No. 13 on the U.S. adult contemporary chart, after remaining steady last week at No. 15 in the July 27 numbers in its ninth chart week. Elsewhere on the charts last week:
In its 16th week, Beyonce's Cowboy Carter loses 19 to No. 40 top sales, 15 to No. 31 current album sales charts, five to No. 15 country albums, two to No. 8 Americana/folk albums, 16 to No. 67 top 200 albums, and six to No. 67 Canadian albums.
Across the pond, Beyonce falls off the 100-position U.K. physical sales chart, down from No. 84, and overall sales, down from No. 92. It slips one to No. 4 country albums and remains steady at No. 5 Americana.
The fan video for Dolly's duet with Blessing Offor on "Somebody's Child" debuted last week using photos submitted by fans. Coincidentally, your webmaster's picture with my children (Tommy and Dolly) is shown when Dolly starts singing, as the second verse begins around the 1-minute, 12-second mark. Watch the video here or in the media player above.
'Still Working 9 To 5' Heading To Streamers The filmmakers behind the documentary Still Working 9 To 5 revealed last week that they have finally struck a deal for nationwide wide release of the project, with a debut on two streaming services to be announced soon.
Dolly Donates Dress For Elton John AIDS Foundation Dolly has donated the dress she wore for a British photo shoot and meet-and-greet at a 2007 London concert for Elton John's AIDS Foundation's Rocket Man Resale Auction. The item ends here at 1 a.m. Eastern Monday, July 29. As of press time, bidding was at $10,100.
'Forever Young' Receives Two IBMA Nominations Dolly on Wednesday took two nominations at the International Bluegrass Music Association Awards for her collaboration with Daniel Grindstaff and Paul Brewster on "Forever Young." The track will compete for Song of the Year against "Fall In Tennessee" by Authentic Unlimited with Jerry Douglas, "Willows" by Sister Sadie, "Too Lonely, Way Too Long" by Rock Faris with Del McCoury, and "Kentucky Gold" by Dale Ann Bradley with Sam Bush as well as Collaborative Recording Of The Year against "Fall In Tennessee," "Brown's Ferry Blues" by Tony Trischka featuring Billy Strings, "Bluegrass Radio" by Alison Brown and Steve Martin, and "Too Old To Die Young" by Bobby Osborne and C.J. Lewandowski. Awards will be handed out Sept. 26.
Dolly's 'Pet Gala' Snags Editing Emmy Nom While Dolly Parton's Pet Gala didn't garner any Emmy nominations for Dolly or for variety shows, its technical staff did receive recognition for Outstanding Picture Editing for Variety Programming. Nominatred are Bill DeRonde, James Collet, Kari Heavenrich, and Stavros Stavropoulous as editors. They face editors from Netflix's John Mulaney Presents: Everybody's In LA, HBO's Nikki Glaser: Someday You'll Die and Ramy Youssef: More Feelings and Prime Video's Tig Notaro: Hello Again. Winners will be announced in September.
Ronald McDonald House Sells Dolly's Idyllwild Cabin Dolly's cabin retreat in Idyllwild, Calif., sold earlier this month for $585,000, several media outlets reported. Dolly had donated the house last year to the local Ronald McDonald House Charities of Southern California, which sold it, The Orange County Register reported here.
'Bubbling Over' Makes 'Rolling Stone' Worst Album Cover List Rolling Stone last week released its list of the 50 worst album covers of all time, limiting it to one per artist, and Dolly's 1973 title Bubbling Over ranked No. 9. Ironically, Billboard in 1973 named it the best country music album cover of the year. See the full list here.
U.S., U.K., Aussie Chart Updates "Step By Step" by Dolly and Natalie Grant will either stay at No. 15 or begin descending on the U.S. adult contemporary singles in the July 27 numbers to be released on Tuesday, Dollymania.net is the first to report. The track rose two to No. 15 in its eighth chart week on the July 20 tally released last week. Elsewhere on the charts last week:
The tribute Petty Country: A Country Music Celebration of Tom Petty featuring Dolly's cover of "Southern Accents" falls off the album sales chart, down from No. 26, but loses 15 to No. 38 current album sales and one to No. 2 compilation albums in its third week.
In its 15th week, Beyonce's Cowboy Carter falls back off the vinyl albums chart, down from No. 1 the previous week. It slides 19 to No. 21 top sales, 14 to No. 16 current album sales charts, six to No. 10 country albums, three to No. 6 Americana/folk albums, 41 to No. 51 top 200 albums, and 17 to No. 61 Canadian albums.
Across the pond, Beyonce falls off the 100-position U.K. all-genre albums chart, down from No. 100, and overall sales chart, down from No. but rises nine to No. 84 physical sales and No. 92 overall sales. It slips one to No. 3 country albums and No. 5 Americana.
July 15: U.K. Gives Dolly Two New Gold Records Dolly has some more metal for her museum, as BPI, the British organization responsible for gold and platinum albums, announced Friday that she has recently been awarded two new honors: her 1977 single "Here You Come Again," which was her first gold single selling more than 1 million copies in the U.S. immediately after release, has hit the gold mark overseas, with the digital release of the single receiving gold status in the U.K. on July 5 marking sales of 400,000 units. In addition, her compilation Diamonds & Rhinestones, The Greatest Hits Collection was certified gold on June 28 for sales in excess of 100,000 copies, having previously been certified silver in October.
'CBS Mornings' Airs In-Depth Interview
CBS Mornings last week aired a new interview with Dolly from the opening of her Dolly Parton Experience museum at Dollywoodhere. Check out the edited, nine-minute version which aired on television here or in the media player below, and the extended 30-minute version here or in the media player above.
'Step By Step' To Enter Top 15 AC Singles "Step By Step" by Dolly and Natalie Grant will enter the top 15 of the U.S. adult contemporary singles chart at No. 15 in the July 20 numbers to be released on Tuesday, Dollymania.net is the first to report. The track held steady at No. 17 in its seventh chart week on the July 13 tally released last week. Elsewhere on the charts last week:
The tribute Petty Country: A Country Music Celebration of Tom Petty featuring Dolly's cover of "Southern Accents" falls off the top 200 albums after one week at No. 84. It also drops off the independent label albums chart, down from No. 16; vinyl records, down from No. 15; and country albums, down from No. 18. It loses 19 to No. 26 sales and 17 to No. 23 current album sales but remains No. 1 compilation albums.
In its 14th week, Beyonce's Cowboy Carter rebounds thanks to a new vinyl edition, gaining six to No. 4 country albums, two to No. 3 Americana/folk albums, 40 to No. 10 top 200 albums, and 13 to No. 44 Canadian albums. The set re-enters the top sales and current album sales charts at No. 2 and the vinyl album chart at No. 1. It falls off the top 50 streaming albums, down from No. 49. Next week, the collection should fall back to around No. 50 with 16,000 credits for the week as 3,000 sales and 13,000 streaming equivalents.
Across the pond, Beyonce tumbles back down to No. 100 on the U.K. all-genre albums, down to No. 93 physical sales and No. 92 overall sales. It gains holds steady at No. 2 country albums and dips two to No. 4 Americana.
Dollar General Merch Officially Announced A budget-conscious version of Dolly's homegoods collections is being released this month at Dollar General Stores, which will feature approximately 50 items between $1 and $10, with most costing $5 or less. The new kitchen and housewares collection was officially announced last week after circulating on social media for a couple of weeks in advance. Click on the photo at left courtesy Dollar General for a larger view.
'Threads: My Songs In Symphony' Gets Promo Dolly last week released a promotional video for her upcoming virtual tour of symphony orchestras playing her songs while she tells stories on videotape. Check out the clip here or in the media player below.
July 8: Tony-Winning Sher To Direct 'Hello, I'm Dolly' Dolly's team for her 2026 Broadway bio-musical last week announced nine-time Tony Best Director nominee (winner for 2008's South Pacific revival) as the director of her Hello, I'm Dolly production. In a press release, Dolly commented: "How lucky I am to have the great Bartlett Sher direct my Hello, I'm Dolly musical. When you decide to put your whole life up on stage, you hope and pray to find the right director with the right creativity and sensitivity to present all the blood, sweat, tears, light, love, and laughter that I've experienced over seven decades of living. My heart tells me that Bartlett is the man and the director for the job." Said Sher: "Dolly is one of the great songwriters in the American canon, and being entrusted with the opportunity to help her translate that glorious talent into the American musical theater is not only an honor, but absolutely a thrill. As a young man growing up in San Francisco, I was a huge fan of the Grateful Dead. Their favorite vocal artist was Dolly Parton, and so is mine."
'CBS Mornings' Books Dolly Interview Tuesday Dolly will be interviewed on Tuesday's CBS Mornings program, which starts at 7 a.m. Eastern, it has been announced.
U.S., U.K., Aussie Chart Updates Dolly's duet with Natalie Grant will either stay at No. 17 next week or slide on the Adult Contemporary chart this week when the July 13 numbers are released on Tuesday, Dollymania has confirmed and is the first anywhere to report. As was previously revealed here last Sunday night, "Step By Step" rises one to that No. 17 spot last week in its sixth chart week in the July 6 charts. Elsewhere on the charts last week:
The tribute Petty Country: A Country Music Celebration of Tom Petty debuts at No. 1 compilation albums, No. 7 album sales, No. 6 current album sales, No. 18 country albums, No. 16 independent label albums, No. 15 vinyl albums and No. 84 top 200 albums with 11,000 units sold. The collection features Dolly's cover of "Southern Accents."
Dolly's duet with Zach Williams on "Lookin' For You" falls off the Christian airplay chart, down from No. 37 in its 11th week.
In its 13th week, Beyonce's Cowboy Carter inches down one to No. 10 country albums and remains steady at No. 5 Americana/folk albums. The set loses 12 to No. 50 top 200 albums, 11 to No. 49 streaming albums, and seven to No. 57 Canadian albums. The project will re-enter the top 10 at No. 10 in this week's Top 200 albums chart coming out Tuesday, thanks to a deluxe vinyl re-issue pushing it up to 40,000 credits for the week consisting of about 26,000 sales and 14,000 streaming equivalents in its 14th week.
Across the pond, Beyonce shoots up 59 to places No. 40 on the U.K. all-genre albums, re-entering both sales and physical sales at No. 10 and vinyl at No. 4. It gains two to No. 2 country albums and holds steady at No. 2 Americana.
July 1: 'Step By Step' To Rise On Adult Contemporary Chart Dolly's duet with Natalie Grant will continue rising step-by-step on the Adult Contemporary chart this week when the July 6 numbers are released on Tuesday, Dollymania has confirmed and is the first anywhere to report. "Step By Step" will rise one to No. 17 in its sixth chart week on Tuesday, after remaining steady at No. 18 in the June 29 chart Billboard released last Tuesday. Elsewhere on the charts last week:
Dolly's duet with Zach Williams on "Lookin' For You" slips seven to No. 37 in its 11th week on the Christian airplay chart.
In its 12th week, Beyonce's Cowboy Carter falls two to No. 9 country albums and remains steady at No. 5 Americana albums. The set loses eight to No. 38 top 200 albums, eight to No. 38 streaming albums, five to No. 50 Canadian albums, and off current album sales, down from No. 37. The project will likely fall to around No. 49 in this week's Top 200 albums chart coming out Tuesday, given Hits Daily Double estimates 16,000 credits for the week consisting of about 1,000 sales and 15,000 streaming equivalents in its 13th week.
Across the pond, Beyonce drops five to No. 99 on the U.K. all-genre albums, remaining steady at No. 4 country, gaining one to No. 2 Americana. It falls off streaming albums, down from No. 91.
Ohio Considers Dolly Plates Drivers in Ohio may soon be able to buy a Dolly license plate to support her Imagination Library early childhood literacy charity in the state, as Ohio Senate Democratic Leader Nickie J. Antonio last week introduced SB290 to create the plate the same as Dolly's home state of Tennessee has done. Two years ago, Ohio surpassed Tennessee as the state with the most Imagination Library children enrolled. Read more here.
Dollywood Beats Disney Again For Best Park Trip Advisor has named Dollywood the nation's best theme park for 2024, with Disney's Magic Kingdom Orlando coming in second. Read more from The Knoxville News-Sentinelhere.
Dolly Jokes With Ryan Reynolds, Rob McElhenney Dolly released a funny commercial last week pretending to having been tricked into promoting the Disney+ series Welcome To Wrexham by Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney about their European football team. Watch her here or in the media player below pretend to know who McElhenney is but not Reynolds.
