Dolly Parton, who rose from humble beginnings to the greatest heights of American music and became one of the country’s most philanthropic, unifying and beloved stars, died Tuesday in Nashville, according to a family statement. She was 80.
The statement said Parton died “peacefully.” A small, private service will be held for her close family, the statement added.
Parton died “after bravely facing a brief battle with cancer,” her publicist Marcel Pariseau later said.
The star had been open about various health issues in the last two years, and especially after her husband Carl Dean died in March 2025. “Back when my husband Carl was very sick — that was for a long time — and then when he passed, I didn’t take care of myself,” Parton said in a video to fans earlier this year. “So I let a lot of things go that I should have been taking care of.”
In a career that spanned over half a century, Parton captured the American experience, penning more than 3,000 songs. Those included “Coat of Many Colors,” a quiet ode to her mother, who stitched together garments in the family’s rural Tennessee home. She wrote and performed songs of love and heartbreak, like “Jolene” and “I Will Always Love You.” “9 to 5,” the title track from the movie of the same name, in which Parton also starred, became an anthem for American women and workers.
Parton went on to release 49 albums and win 11 Grammys, and became one of the most successful country crossover artists of all time, scoring regular hits on the pop charts, including “Islands in the Stream,” a duet with Kenny Rogers.
Later in life, she funneled her massive success into philanthropy, founding a library program that has gifted more than 300 million books to children around the world.
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