08/25/2026
Tennessee feels a little quieter today.
It’s hard to put into words what Dolly Parton has meant to this state, because she was always so much more than the music.
She was rhinestones and mountain roots. Big hair and an even bigger heart. A songwriter, storyteller, businesswoman, philanthropist, and a woman who showed generations of us that being kind and being strong were never opposites.
She showed the world that you could come from very little and still dream enormously. That you could be unapologetically feminine and extraordinarily smart. That you could laugh at yourself without ever making yourself smaller. And that success meant a whole lot more when you turned around and used it to help somebody else.
Here in Tennessee, she always felt like ours.
But the truth is, Dolly never belonged to just Tennessee. She belonged to the world. To all of us.
Somehow, no matter where you were from, she felt familiar. Her music, her humor, her kindness, her story. She had a way of making the whole world feel a little more like home.
Today we lost an icon, but what a beautiful mark she left behind.
Rest well, sweet Dolly. Tennessee will always be proud to call you ours, but we know we were never the only ones who loved you. 💖💅👠🎤
1946–2026
Photo: David Gahr/Getty Images
