Dec. 16: 'Precious Memories,' 'Sha-Kon-O-Hey' Get First Digital Releases
Two classic, limited-release Dolly albums saw their first nationwide release and first digital availability last week: Precious Memories, which had been a Dollywood-exclusive release in 1999, and Sha-Kon-O-Hey! Land Of Blue Smoke, the Dolly-performed soundtrack to her theme park's 2009 stage musical about the history of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park created in partnership with the Eastern Band of Cherokee. The former was sold solely at the park to raise funds to support Dolly's Imagination Library early childhood literacy program while the latter was sold both at the park and the National Park Service office as a fundraiser for the Friends of the Smokies volunteer boosters as part of the national park's 75th anniversary. Both titles were released last week to streaming and download services for the first time, marking the first nationwide release and first non-CD release for each. Download Precious Memories here from Amazon or stream it on YouTube starting here or in the media player above. Download Sha-Kon-O-Hey! Land Of Blue Smoke here from Amazon or stream it on YouTube starting here or in the media player below.
Latest Book Interviews, Appearances Shared
Dolly continued her media tour last week to promote her holiday children's book Dolly Parton's Billy the Kid Comes Home for Christmas, new jewelry line, food line, and more with another livestream on Talk Shop Livehere or in the media player above, an interview with Nashville Local 2 here, Bunny XO's Dumb Blonde podcast here (video available from her Patreon channel here), Voguehere, and NPR's Morning Editionhere or in the audio player below.
Dolly Donates Second $1 Million To Salvation Army Hunger Relief Dolly's generosity has hit once again, as last week she donated $1 million to the national Salvation Army red kettle campaign for the second year in a row, funding this contribution from her $100 million Courage and Civility Award funds from Jeff Bezos. The funds will be directed to local communities facing high demand for food services this holiday season, the organization said. In a statement, National Commander Kenneth G. Hodder said: "Ms. Parton is once again ringing in hope and holiday spirit through another incredibly generous donation. Ahead of this Christmas season, when hope is needed more than ever, we are honored and grateful to receive this gift which will help The Salvation Army serve millions of individuals and families during a time of vital need." She gave $1 million last year when she also served as the campaign kick-off with her half-time performance at the Dallas Cowboys' Thanksgiving game.
Cookbook Remains On Best Seller Lists Sales continued well for Good Lookin' Cookin' by Dolly, Rachel Parton George, and Maurice Miner in its 11th week of release, moving 19,943 copies for a cumulative total of 167,118 units sold since release, allowing the title to earn an 11th week on the New York Times Advice, How-To, and Miscellaneous Best Sellers List, dipping two to No. 7, and Publisher's Weekly Hardcover Nonfiction bestseller list, sliding five to No. 9.
CMT Plans Dolly Christmas Marathon CMT will have its own Holly, Dolly Christmas this year with repeat showings of Dolly movies for the holiday this year. Things kick off at 8 p.m. Eastern Christmas Eve with Dolly Parton's Coat Of Many Colors, followed by Dolly Parton's Christmas Of Many Colors: Circle Of Love, followed by Steel Magnolias. The three films repeat again starting 9 a.m. Christmas Day, and then the two "Coat" movies repeat twice each more that evening starting at the 4:30 p.m. block and 9 p.m. block.
See 'Still Working 9 To 5' For Free This Week If you haven't watched the amazing documentary Still Working 9 To 5 yet, your chance is here. The film will have a special free virtual screening Dec. 19-23 in partnership with the ACLU SoCal, Young Feminist Party, ERA Coalition, League of Women Voters, and Female Quotient. Register here and you will be able to watch anytime during that five-day window an introductory video from Dolly, the documentary itself, and a Q&A session with the filmmakers and activists exploring its themes of workplace equity, the ERA, and civil rights for women in the U.S. If you want to watch the film outside of this window, it is available for rent or download from many retailers including Amazon here.
Dolly Loses Top Rock Album At Billboard Music Awards Noah Kahan's Stick Season beat out fellow nominees Dolly's Rockstar album, country artist Zach Bryan's The Great American Bar Scene and Zach Bryan albums, and Hozier's Unheard EP for Top Rock Album at last week's Billboard Music Awards. The awards are based solely on chart performance over the past year, and Kahan's project has been on the Top Rock Albums chart for 98 weeks, 35 of which were spent at No. 1, compared to Dolly's seven weeks on the chart, only one of which was spent at No. 1.
Post Malone Album With Dolly Duet Goes Platinum Post Malone's F 1 Trillion album featuring the Dolly duet "Have The Heart" was certified platinum by the RIAA on Thursday for sales and streams in excess of the equivalent of 1 million copies.
U.S., U.K., Aussie Chart Updates Dolly Parton & Family: Smoky Mountain DNA -- Family, Faith & Fables sees a third week on the Billboard bluegrass albums chart with the Dec. 14 tallies released Tuesday, but the title falls two spots to No. 3 after two consecutive weeks at No. 1 on the specialty genre chart.
Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon's holiday album Holiday Seasoning, featuring his Dolly duet "It's Almost Too Early For Christmas" from two years ago, remains steady at No. 1 comedy albums, gaining one to No. 40 holiday albums in its fifth chart week.
Post Malone's country album F 1 Trillion, featuring a Dolly duet, drops 13 places to No. 32 Top 200 albums and No. 32 streaming, holding steady at No. 14 Canadian albums and No. 3 country albums, while re-entering the current album sales chart at No. 47.
Beyonce's Cowboy Carter, with a "Jolene" cover and Dolly voice-overs, inches up eight to No. 36 country albums and two to No. 13 Americana/folk albums.
Down Under, Post Malone's F 1 Trillion holds steady at No. 3 country, while Cowboy Carter remains at No. 27 Australian country albums. Malone's also holds steady at No. 36 Australian pop albums.
Across the pond, A Holly, Dolly Christmas re-enters the top Scottish albums at No. 100. Malone's album falls off the U.K. pop albums and top streaming albums, down from No. 91 and No. 100, respectively, gaining one to No. 2 country. Beyonce's album remains steady at No. 8 U.K. country albums but gains one to No. 7 Americana albums. The U.K. country compilations tally sees Very Best Of Dolly Parton Vol. 1 remain steady at No. 3 and Diamonds & Rhinestones, The Greatest Hits Collection at No. 4, while The Complete Trio Collection Deluxe slips three to No. 9, and the Original Album Series from Linda Ronstadt rise one to No. 17.
Dec. 9: National Casting Call For Broadway Dolly Opens
Dolly last week announced a nationwide open asting call to play her at various ages in the Broadway musical of her life story to premiere next year in Nashville before moving to New York in 2026. Like the current Cher musical, Dolly: An Original Musical will feature three actors portraying her throughout her life: a young Dolly, an adult Dolly, and an older Dolly. The show will feature both new compositions and her biggest hits. Applicants over 18 may post a one-minute video of them performing a Dolly song to Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, YouTube, or X with the hashtgag #SearchForDolly by Jan. 12 and complete an application on the musical's website https://dollymusical.com to be considered (those under 18 are asked to upload their video to the website rather than the public social media platforms). A select few will meet with the casting director. Check out Dolly's announcement here or in the media player above.
Dolly Promotes New 'Billy' Book With Interviews
Dolly was making the media rounds last week with several unannounced appearances to promote her new children's book Dolly Parton's Billy the Kid Comes Home for Christmas. Check out her interview on CBS This Morninghere or in the media player above, a clip from the FOX News interview here and an interview with Entertainment Tonighthere, and Peoplehere. She was also interviewed for Wal-Mart and TalkShopLive here.
Fallon Special To Repeat Dec. 18 Dolly appeared via green screen on Jimmy Fallon's holiday special last week to introduce their duet, which was played using animation. The special will repeat at 8 p.m. Eastern Dec. 18.
'Good Lookin' Cookin'' Sees Black Friday Increases Thanks to Black Friday sales, Good Lookin' Cookin' by Dolly, Rachel Parton George, and Maurice Miner got a massive sales increase in its 10th week on the Best Seller Lists. It gains one to No. 5 on the New York Times Advice, How-To, and Miscellaneous Best Sellers List but shoots up an impressive 13 places on Publisher's Weekly to No. 4 on the Hardcover Nonfiction bestseller list, selling 19,843 copies the previous week for a cumulative total of 147,175 since release.
U.S., U.K., Aussie Chart Updates Unfortunately, Black Friday didn't help Dolly Parton & Family: Smoky Mountain DNA -- Family, Faith & Fables on the charts any, as the title remains at No. 1 on the Billboard bluegrass albums chart but failed to add to any of the country charts or all-genre charts in its second week, falling off the 50-position current album sales chart, down from No. 47. (Its debut week likely saw sales around 1,500 copies but thanks to Black Friday the minimum sales to break the top 50 current albums chart this week was around 6,400 copies.) In other chart developments:
A Holly, Dolly Christmas falls off the 50-position Holiday Albums Chart, down from No. 47 in its fifth week this season, its 48th chart week since release.
Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon's holiday album Holiday Seasoning, featuring his Dolly duet "It's Almost Too Early For Christmas" from two years ago, recaptures the No. 1 comedy albums position, up from No. 2, for its fourth chart week, falling off the current album sales list, down from No. 46, and dropping six to No. 41 holiday albums.
Post Malone's country album F 1 Trillion, featuring a Dolly duet, holds steady at No. 19 Top 200 albums, loses three to No. 19 streaming, three to No. 14 Canadian albums and falls off current albums, down from No. 49, remaining steady at No. 3 country albums.
Beyonce's Cowboy Carter, with a "Jolene" cover and Dolly voice-overs, inches down one to No. 44 country albums and gains one to No. 15 Americana/folk albums.
Down Under, Post Malone's F 1 Trillion holds steady at No. 3 country, while Cowboy Carter rises nine to No. 27 Australian country albums. Malone's gains two to No. 36 Australian pop albums.
Across the pond, Dolly's Rockstar falls back off the U.K. Americana albums chart, down from No. 36. Malone's album increases four to No. 91 U.K. pop albums and loses seven to No. 100 streaming albums, holding steady at No. 3 country. Beyonce's album rises two to No. 8 U.K. country albums but loses two to No. 8 Americana albums. The U.K. country compilations tally sees Very Best Of Dolly Parton Vol. 1 remain steady at No. 3 and Diamonds & Rhinestones, The Greatest Hits Collection at No. 4, while The Complete Trio Collection Deluxe loses one to No. 6, and the Original Album Series from Linda Ronstadt gains two to No. 18 as Emmylou Harris' first volume in the series falls back off the top 20, down from No. 19.
Dec. 2: Dolly Accepts 'Billboard' Greatest Of All Time Honor
Dolly last week released a video acknowledging her being chosen by the music critics of Billboard magazine as the greatest country music artist of all time. She said: "I just learned that Billboard Magazine just released their list of country music's greatest artists of all time, and they have my name sitting at the top! Can you believe that? Now, when I was a little girl, I would sit around the radio and listen to the Grand Ole Opry and hearing all those great big stars like Hank Williams and Kitty Wells and Johnny Cash, I dreamed of what my life could actually become as well. I just want to say a great big thank you to the folks at billboard but most of all to you, the fans, I take none of this for granted. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to take my music all around the world and to see all my dreams come true. Just know this from the bottom of my heart I will always love you and I will always be doing that country music." Watch it here or in the media player above and check out Billboard's story on her reaction here.
'Rockstar' Gets 'Billboard' Music Award Nomination In related news, after being snubbed by both the CMAs and Grammy Awards, Dolly's Rockstar album last week received its first award nomination: one of five records up for the Billboard Music Awards' Top Rock Album category. However, rather than recognizing the artistry or content of any album, the Billboard awards are simply recognition of the top-charting artists and music of the past year. Therefore, nomination just means her album was one of the five highest-performing albums of the year on the Top Rock Albums chart, and whichever album is named the winner during a ceremony airing at 8 p.m. Eastern Dec. 12 on FOX, Fire TV, and Paramount+ is just the year-end chart No. 1 for that category. The other nominees are Zach Bryan's The Great American Bar Scene and Zach Bryan albums, Hozier's Unheard EP, and Noah Kahan's Stick Season.
'DNA' Debuts At No. 1 Bluegrass In 'Billboard' And in still more related news, Dolly continues to make Billboard history, as her Dolly Parton & Family: Smoky Mountain DNA -- Family, Faith & Fables debuts last week on the Nov. 30 Billboard charts coming in at No. 1 bluegrass albums and No. 47 current album sales. It's her second bluegrass chart-topper after Run, Rose, Run. Given its sales position, it likely moved between 1,500 and 2,000 copies its first week of release. Since most retailers didn't ship due to apparent production delays, those likely are mostly downloads and I would expect a higher chart position in week two when most retailers actually shipped their products to customers. A social media post on the project's official page celebrated the debut but also claimed it was No. 6 on Billboard's country albums chart, but the chart released Tuesday did not show it in the top 50 and instead had Zach Bryan's self-titled album at No. 6. In other chart developments:
A Holly, Dolly Christmas inches up two to No. 47 in its fifth week this season on the Holiday Albums Chart, its 48th chart week since release.
Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon's holiday album Holiday Seasoning, featuring his Dolly duet "It's Almost Too Early For Christmas" from two years ago, sees its third week on the charts as it loses one to No. 2 comedy albums, 21 to No. 46 current album sales, and 13 to No. 35 holiday albums. The set falls off the overall album sales chart, down from No. 35.
Post Malone's country album F 1 Trillion, featuring a Dolly duet, dips three to No. 19 Top 200 albums, one to No. 16 streaming, two to No. 11 Canadian albums and two to No. 49 current albums, remaining steady at No. 3 country albums.
Beyonce's Cowboy Carter, with a "Jolene" cover and Dolly voice-overs, loses 12 to No. 43 country albums and three to No. 16 Americana/folk albums, falling back out of the top 200, down from No. 169.
Down Under, Post Malone's F 1 Trillion holds steady at No. 3 country, while Cowboy Carter dips one to No. 36 Australian country albums. Malone's remains steady at No. 38 Australian pop albums.
Across the pond, Dolly's Rockstar re-enters the U.K. Americana albums chart at No. 36. Malone's album loses 10 to No. 95 U.K. pop albums and 14 to No. 93 streaming albums, holding steady at No. 3 country. Beyonce's album falls five to No. 10 U.K. country albums but rises one to No. 6 Americana albums. The U.K. country compilations tally sees Very Best Of Dolly Parton Vol. 1 inch down one to No. 3, her Diamonds & Rhinestones, The Greatest Hits Collection also dip one to No. 4, the Original Album Series from Linda Ronstadt slide one to No. 20 while Emmylou Harris' first volume in the series re-enters the top 20 at No. 19, Glen Campbell Duets: Ghost On The Canvas Sessions falls back out of the top 20, down from No. 14, and The Complete Trio Collection Deluxe gains four to No. 5.
Dolly To Livestream With Walmart Monday Evening Don't miss Dolly hosting a livestream event with Walmart Live and talkshoplive at 7 p.m. Eastern cybermonday to promote her Walmart holiday party collection. Check it out here and see the reel making her announcement of it here.
Cher Talks Of First Dolly Meeting One of the tid-bits in Cher's new memoir is her first time meeting Dolly at manager Sandy Gallin's home in the late 1970s. She said she saw this country girl with huge hair and gave their manager a "side-eye" of disbelief, to which he basically replied not to judge a book by its cover and assured her she'd love her. Once they got to know each other shortly thereafter, she did fall in love with her and invited her to appear on her 1978 special, earning Dolly her first Emmy nomination, and she said the two remain friends to this day. Read more from Peoplehere and order the book here.
Cookbook Still On Best Seller Lists Good Lookin' Cookin' by Dolly, Rachel Parton George, and Maurice Miner has stayed a 10th week on the New York Times Advice, How-To, and Miscellaneous Best Sellers List, slipping one to No. 6. In Publisher's Weekly, it dips two to No. 17 on the Hardcover Nonfiction bestseller list, selling 7,481 copies the previous week for a cumulative total of 127,332 since release. In related news, the sisters appeared last week on a CMT video here and in the media player below interviewing each other for two and a half minutes to promote the project.
