After being mistakenly posted to YouTube and social media briefly a month and a half ago and then abruptly pulled, Dolly's country version of "Gonna Be You" with Maddie & Tae, Jessie James Decker, and Callie Twisselman was officially released Friday. Stream here or in the media player above and download from Amazon here or from other digital music services. To celebrate the release, Dolly also released a half-hour conversation with the four collaborators titled "Dolly: God, Family, and Show Business." Watch the special here or in the media player below.
New 'I Will Always Love You' Collab Hits
But that's not the only new music she released on Friday, as her collaboration on a new version of "I Will Always Love You" with pianist Alex-Zsolt featuring Charles Billingsley with additional accompaniment from the City of Prague Philharmonic Orchestra. The first verse is a piano instrumental, with Billingsley taking the second verse and chorus before Dolly recites the third verse as on her original and sings in the chorus through the end of the song. Stream it on YouTube here or in the media player above and download it from Amazon here or from your favorite digital retailer.
Another 'DNA' Track Surfaces
And that's still not the only new music we can sample, thanks to Dolly's genderqueer niece Rebecca Sevier, who also runs her aunt's archives and co-wrote her book on her costumes. Rebecca performs as a cis-fem drag queen and debuted their and Dolly's collaboration from the upcoming Dolly Parton & Family: Smoky Mountain DNA -- Family, Faith & Fables project: "Where Will We Live Tomorrow" at Knox Pride, sharing the video of the lip-synch performance to social media here or in the media player above.
'Cookin'' Sells Another 10,000 Copies Good Lookin' Cookin' by Dolly, Rachel Parton George, and Maurice Miner inches back up one to No. 4 in its third week on the New York Times Advice, How-To, and Miscellaneous Best Sellers List. The title also falls four to No. 10 in its third week on Publisher's Weekly's Best Seller Non-Fiction List thanks to 10,144 copies sold, bringing its three-week total to 75,668.
Halsey Dresses As 'Rainbow' Dolly Singer Halsey is introducing her new album The Great Impersonator by releasing a photo a day of her recreating iconic album covers of the artists whose music inspired each track on the album, and she started with Dolly, imitating her 1987 Rainbow album cover. Check out the image from Rolling Stonehere.
Dolly Duet On Fallon Holiday Album Jimmy Fallon has announced he will release a Christmas album, Holiday Seasoning, Nov. 1 including his and Dolly's duet "Almost Too Early For Christmas" from two years ago. No word on whether they have any other collaborations on the album.
U.S., U.K., Aussie Chart Updates Post Malone's country album F 1 Trillion, featuring a Dolly duet, will slip to No. 7 in Tuesday's charts with 43,000 credited units last week (3,000 sold and 40,000 streaming equivalents. In last week's Oct. 12 charts released last Tuesday, the album fell two to No. 6 Top 200 Albums, one to No. 2 country albums and one to No. 5 streaming, holding steady at No. 2 Canadian albums, No. 30 sales and No. 28 current sales.
Beyonce's Cowboy Carter, with a "Jolene" cover and Dolly voice-overs, loses 11 to No. 182 on the top 200 albums list and two to No. 32 country albums, re-entering the Americana/folk albums list at No. 16.
Down Under, Post Malone's F 1 Trillion declines one to No. 4 country, while Cowboy Carter slips five to No. 36 Australian country albums. Malone's album dips three to No. 17 Australian pop albums.
Across the pond, Malone's album loses eight spots to No. 46 U.K. pop albums, 12 to No. 41 streaming albums, 11 to No. 95 physical sales, 10 to No. 82 overall sales, and 18 to No. 82 downloads, gaining two to retake No. 1 country albums. Beyonce's album gains one to No. 12 U.K. country albums and holds steady at No. 8 Americana albums. The U.K. country compilations tally sees Very Best Of Dolly Parton Vol. 1 slide one to No. 2, while her Diamonds & Rhinestones, The Greatest Hits Collection loses two to No. 6, The Complete Trio Collection Deluxe dips two to No. 15, and the Original Album Series sees Linda Ronstadt's volume rise five to No. 12, Emmylou Harris's first volume lose two to No. 17, and Emmylou's second volume inch up one to No. 19.
Oct. 7: Dolly Donates $2 Million To Hurricane Relief
Dolly Parton, along with officials from Dollywood Parks & Resorts, The Dollywood Foundation, Dolly Parton's Stampede, Pirates Voyage and Walmart, announced significant donations to flood relief during a special event Friday afternoon at Walmart #678 in Newport, Tennessee. The location has helped the local community by offering meals, as well as showers and laundry facilities to those affected by the unprecedented flooding from Hurricane Helene.
As communities across the Appalachian region continue the daunting cleanup efforts, Dolly announced a $1 million donation to the Mountain Ways Foundation, a registered 501(c)(3) dedicated to providing immediate assistance to Hurricane Helene flood victims. In addition, Dolly's East Tennessee businesses—Dollywood Parks & Resorts, Dolly Parton's Stampede, and Pirates Voyage Dinner & Show—as well as The Dollywood Foundation are combining efforts and have pledged to match her donation to Mountain Ways with a $1 million contribution of their own.
The donations help jumpstart the efforts of Mountain Ways to provide essential financial resources directly and efficiently to the most affected areas. Mountain Ways also will coordinate other relief efforts, including distributing food, water and other necessary supplies.
"These are special people here; they're my people," Dolly explained. "I feel like all people are my people, but everyone here grew up in the mountains just like I did so of course I have a close connection to them. I can't stand to see anyone hurting, so I wanted to do what I could to help after these terrible floods. I hope we can all be a little bit of light in the world for our friends, our neighbors—even strangers—during this dark time they are experiencing.
"I'm also appreciative that all my East Tennessee businesses and the folks at Walmart are contributing to flood relief. This money will certainly help a lot of people, but there is still so much more this area needs. I hope we'll see more people make donations or volunteer because the people here need so much right now."
During the event, Walmart U.S. President and CEO John Furner announced the company, including Sam's Club and the Walmart Foundation, would increase their commitment and donate a total of $10 million to hurricane relief efforts across the affected states.
"One of the things we love most about Dolly as a partner is her incredible heart and care for her community," said Furner. "She reminds me of our associates who are always the first to jump to action when our communities need us. This time is no different, and we will continue to provide support until they have recovered."
Dollywood already has worked with its sponsorship partner Coca-Cola to donate a semi-truck full of water for distribution in Cocke County, Tennessee. Additionally, Dollywood also has donated 60,000 reusable masks, 30,000 disposable protective garments and 2.5 million disposable masks to be used for cleanup efforts across East Tennessee. They also have donated disposable serving ware and utensils for thousands of meals being distributed by Mountain Ways.
In conjunction with donation centers established by the city of Pigeon Forge, Dollywood theme park also will become a donation drop-off location for those wishing to provide items for the cleanup. Items needed include buckets with lids, tarps, shovels, rakes, trash bags, work gloves, masks, cleaning wipes, diapers, baby formula and food, can openers, first aid supplies, personal hygiene items, kitty litter, new socks and underwear, clean towels and blankets, laundry detergent, pet food and hand sanitizer. Items may be donated at the designated drop-off point at the front gate area of the park.
Dollywood Parks & Resorts officials encourage those with the capability to donate or to volunteer. Mountain Ways is working with local nonprofits and governmental officials to ensure the donated funds and resources reach affected communities across the region. Monetary donations can be made by visiting the Mountain Ways Foundation website, mountainwaystn.org.
"This beautiful region which we all love so much has an extreme challenge ahead of it," said Eugene Naughton, Dollywood Parks & Resorts President. "And while it may be quite daunting right now, we know the spirit of the people in this region will help them overcome what faces them in the days ahead. We want to encourage others to donate or to volunteer in any way they can to help their neighbors and communities recover from this difficult time.
"Dollywood's share of the donation from our 'Love Shares' program helps Mountain Ways get started in providing immediate assistance where needed. As local leaders are able to better assess their communities in the coming weeks, we will determine additional ways we can assist in the recovery effort."
Video at top or on YouTube here courtesy Dollywood. Click on each photo for larger view. Top photo of Dolly with officials from Dollywood and Walmart by Derek Cress/Dollywood Parks & Resorts. Lower photo of Dolly and Walmart President and CEO John Furner by Jordan Hunt/Walmart. Used with permission.
'Good Lookin' Cookin'' Remains In Top 10 Good Lookin' Cookin' by Dolly, Rachel Parton George, and Maurice Miner slips four in its second week on the New York Times Advice, How-To, and Miscellaneous Best Sellers to No. 5. The title also falls four to No. 6 in its second week on Publisher's Weekly's Best Seller Non-Fiction List thanks to 14,295 copies sold, bringing its two-week total to 65,525.
'Billy The Kid' Holiday Book Released That's not Dolly's only book out now, as Dolly Parton's Billy the Kid Comes Home for Christmas, her sequel to Billy The Kid Makes It Big, hit stores last week. Once again featuring Dolly's goddog, this one is based on her song "Comin' Home For Christmas" and follows the dog and his band deciding whether to play Barkafeller Center on Christmas Day or spend the holiday with family. In a press release, Dolly said: "I always love celebrating Christmas with my family and of course my god-dog Billy. Since he's a big star now, he deserves his own holiday special! Using my 'Comin' Home for Christmas' lyrics, I wanted to tell a story about the importance of family and friends, especially during the holidays. I hope this is a book families will be excited to read every year for Christmas." Get the book here and audio book here.
Dolly Wins Third Dove Award Dolly took home her third Dove Award last week, as "Lookin' For You" with Zach Williams won Bluegrass/Country/Roots Recorded Song of the Year. She had previously won the same category for "In The Sweet By and By" two years ago with Larry Cordle, Carl Jackson, Jerry Salley, and Bradley Walker and Video of the Year with King & Country for "God Only Knows" in 2020 and had been nominated for pop recorded song with Williams for "There Was Jesus." Her previous nominations had been in the bluegrass/country/roots category for collaborations with Dottie Rambo and Brad Paisley as well as as a songwriter for a cover song by Rhonda Vincent.
'Still Working 9 To 5' Heads To Streamers The filmmakers of the documentary Still Working 9 To 5 have revealed that the film is now available on several streaming services for rental or purchase starting Monday including Apple TV, YouTube's Movies, and Amazon, where it rents for $5 and sells for $13 here.
'Step By Step' Falls Off Chart Dolly's collaboration with Natalie Grant, "Step By Step," has ended its run on the Adult Contemporary charts, falling off the 30-position tally, down from No. 30 in its 18th chart week on the tally. It peaked at No. 13. Elsewhere on the charts:
Post Malone's country album F 1 Trillion, with its Dolly duet, will dip to No. 6 in Tuesday's charts with 47,000 credited units last week (3,000 sold and 44,000 streaming equivalents. In last week's Oct. 5 charts released last Tuesday, the album held steady at No. 4 Top 200 Albums, 11 to No. 30 sales, nine to No. 28 current sales, and two to No. 4 streaming, holding steady at No. 2 Canadian albums and No. 1 country albums.
Beyonce's Cowboy Carter, featuring a couple of Dolly voice-overs and a "Jolene" cover, loses 31 on the top 200 albums list to No. 171 and two to No. 30 country albums, falling off the Americana/folk albums list, down from No. 13.
Down Under, Post Malone's F 1 Trillion declines two to No. 3 country after six consecutive weeks at No. 1 No. 1 Australian country, while Cowboy Carter slips one to No. 31 Australian country albums. Malone's album dips two to No. 14 Australian pop albums.
Across the pond, Malone's album loses two spots to No. 34 U.K. pop albums, two to No. 29 streaming albums, 18 to No. 84 physical sales, 19 to No. 72 overall sales, 16 to No. 44 downloads and one to No. 3 country albums. It falls off the Scottish albums chart, down from No. 81. Beyonce's album loses four to No. 13 U.K. country albums and holds steady at No. 8 Americana albums. The U.K. country compilations tally sees Very Best Of Dolly Parton Vol. 1 remain at No. 1, while her Diamonds & Rhinestones, The Greatest Hits Collection gains two to No. 4, The Complete Trio Collection Deluxe regains one to No. 13, the Original Album Series sees Linda Ronstadt's volume and Emmylou Harris's first volume both re-enter the top 20 at No. 17 and No. 15, respectively, as Emmylou's second volume holds steady at No. 20 and the tribute Glen Campbell Duets: Ghost On The Canvas Sessions falls back out of the top 20, down from No. 13.
Oct. 1: 'Good Lookin' Cookin'' Tops Best-Seller Lists Dolly Parton, Rachel Parton George, and their co-writter, Maurice Miner, may celebrate topping the best seller list nationwide. Good Lookin' Cookin' debuts at No. 1 on the Oct. 6 New York Times Best Selling Books list for advice, how-to, & miscellaneous books. The book also came in No. 1 for Publisher's Weekly non-fiction titles and No. 2 from all books in all genres last week with 51,534 copies sold. The sisters also were interviewed about the project by Better Homes & Gardenshere.
Dollywood Lowering Season Pass Prices, Extending Silver Season Dollywood's this week showed it was listening to customer complaints when announcing the 2025 season pass renewals coming Oct. 14. For those complaining of the price of the season pass, the park will decrease pass prices over the current amount. The introductory-level partial-year single-park Silver Pass will pre-sell for $149, a $25 decrease over the current $174 pass price and the same price as Silver Passes cost in last year's pre-sale, and the full-year single-park Gold Pass will pre-sell for $224, also $25 less than the current pass price and the same price as Gold Passes cost in last year's pre-sale. (How much the two-park upgrade will be has not been revealed, but it was $55 in each of the past two years.) The two-park premium Diamond pass will pre-sell for $339, a $15 increase over last year's price. In addition, the park extended the use period for the Silver Pass to Dec. 14 next year, including six out of the nine weeks of the Christmas festival with only the last three weeks blacked out instead of the current passes which included four weeks of the festival with the last five weeks blacked out. Also, those who renew their adult silver passes will see the extension for 2024 as well, giving those visitors through Dec. 15 to use their passes for this year instead of expiring at Thanksgiving (for comparison, competitor King's Island offers a similar introductory, partial-year Silver Pass but it expires at Labor Day). Child silver passes for ages 9 and under will continue to have no blackout dates but again be subject to Bring a Friend Pass blackouts. The silver passes will come again with two Bring a Friend passes with blackouts, gold passes two without blackouts, and diamond four without blackouts. In addition, each pass level will receive a bonus pre-sale voucher for 30 percent off a stay at a Dollywood Resort during select dates, while the diamond passes will also receive a 40th anniversary tumbler and monthly free cinnamon bread again. Additional benefits are expected to be announced by this year's sale date. Free registration for Imagination Passes for those born in 2020 or 2021 and those buying passes for the first time will be able to do so starting Oct. 28.
Dolly, Miley Are Cousins: Ancestry.com
Turns out Dolly and goddaughter Miley Cyrus are related by blood. Ancestry.com discovered for Dolly's sixth great-grandfather John Brickey of Blount County, Tenn., in the 1700s was also Miley's seventh-great-grandfather, making them seventh cousins once removed. Watch Dolly's reaction to the news in an interview she and her sister Rachel gave Access Hollywood about their cookbook here or in the media player above.
Family Album Yields Another Single Yet another single from the upcoming Dolly Parton & Family: Smoky Mountain DNA -- Family, Faith & Fables album was released on Monday, with "When Possession Gets Too Strong" coming from Dolly will her co-writer, her late uncle Louis Owens. Dolly had previously recorded the song for 1970's Fairest Of Them All. Download it here and stream it on YouTube here or in the media player below.
In Memoriam: Kris Kristofferson Legendary country music songwriter and singer Kris Kristofferson died Saturday at age 88. He and Dolly worked together many times over their careers, most notably on the 1982 album and TV special The Winning Hand to try and save Monument Records, where Dolly recorded in the mid-1960s and Kristofferson in the early-1970s, and when they played a married couple in the 2012 church choir comedy Joyful Noise . In a statement to social media, Dolly commented: "What a great loss. What a great writer. What a great actor. What a great friend. I will always love you, Dolly."
Seattle Men's Chorus To Pay Tribute To Dolly The Seattle Men's Chorus will debut a new original show, "Dolly: A Seattle Men's Chorus Salute to Dolly Parton," April 5 to May 18 built entirely around music Dolly created and performed.
Dolly Loses People's Choice, Bluegrass Honors Dolly was empty-handed from two awards shows last week. She lost Favorite Female Artist to Laney Wilson at the People's Choice Country Awards and Favorite Social Artist to Morgan Wallen. Then at Thursday's 35th annual Bluegrass Music Awards, her cover of "Forever Young" with Daniel Grindstaff and Paul Brewster lost Collaborative Recording of the Year to Tony Trischka and Billy Strings for "Brown's Ferry Blues" and Song of the Year to Authentic Unliminted's "Fall In Tennessee."
'Step By Step' Falls On Charts, Other Updates Looks like "Step By Step," Dolly's collaboration with Natalie Grant, has begun its fall from the Adult Contemporary charts, tumbling 14 places this week to No. 30 in its 18th chart week on the tally. It looks like it may drop off the chart next week, but its 18-week run makes it Dolly's fourth-longest running Adult Contemporary career single after the 20 weeks for No. 2 "Here You Come Again" and 22 and 24 weeks, respectively, for No. 1s "9 To 5" and "Islands In The Stream." It peaked at No. 13. Elsewhere on the charts:
It looks like Post Malone's country album F 1 Trillion, featuring a Dolly duet, will hold steady at No. 4 in Tuesday's charts with 54,000 credited units last week (3,000 sold and 51,000 streaming equivalents), Hits Daily Double reported Friday. In last week's Sept. 28 charts released last Tuesday, the album slipping two to No. 4 Top 200 Albums and eight to No. 19 sales and current sales, holding steady at No. 2 streaming, No. 2 Canadian albums, and No. 1 country albums.
Beyonce's Cowboy Carter, featuring a couple of Dolly voice-overs and a "Jolene" cover, loses one on the top 200 albums list to No. 139, two to No. 28 country albums and three to No. 13 Americana/folk albums.
Down Under, Post Malone's F 1 Trillion sees a sixth week at No. 1 Australian country, while Cowboy Carter gains one to No. 30 Australian country albums. Malone's album dips five to No. 12 Australian pop albums.
Across the pond, Malone's album loses 11 spots to No. 32 U.K. pop albums, 16 to No. 81 Scottish albums, eight to No. 27 streaming albums, 25 to No. 66 physical sales, 17 to No. 53 overall sales, five to No. 28 downloads and one to No. 2 country albums. Beyonce's album remains steady at No. 9 U.K. country albums and slides two to No. 8 Americana albums. The U.K. country compilations tally sees Very Best Of Dolly Parton Vol. 1 regains one to recapture the No. 1 spot, while her Diamonds & Rhinestones, The Greatest Hits Collection slides one to No. 6, The Complete Trio Collection Deluxe loses two to No. 14, the Original Album Series sees Linda Ronstadt's volume and Emmylou Harris's first volume both fall back off the top 20, down from No. 15 and No. 20, respectively, as Emmylou's second volume re-enters the top 20 at No. 20 and the tribute Glen Campbell Duets: Ghost On The Canvas Sessions gains three to No. 13.
