Dolly Parton speaks onstage at Music City Center on June 06, 2024 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Terry Wyatt/WireImage)
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Fans of Dolly Parton (and last we checked, that’s pretty much everyone) can now breathe a sigh of relief.
The country music legend posted a video message on her social media channels Wednesday, assuring the public that she’s “not dying.”
Public concern for Parton, 79, has grown since the recent postponement of her upcoming Las Vegas concerts due to “health challenges.” That concern peaked on Tuesday after her sister Freida Parton said she’d been “up all night praying for my sister, Dolly.”
“Many of you know (Dolly) hasn’t been feeling her best lately,” she wrote on Facebook.
On Wednesday, her famous sister responded with a video shot at her Nashville-area soundstage, where she explained she was filming commercials for the Grand Ole Opry.
“Do I look sick to you? I’m working hard here,” Parton said with a smile.
“Anyway, I wanted to put everybody’s mind at ease…I appreciate your prayers because I’m a person of faith. I can always use the prayers for anything and everything.”
Parton said she’d neglected her health following the March 3 death of Carl Dean, her husband of nearly 60 years.
“I let a lot of things go that I should have been taking care of,” she said.
“…When I got around to it, the doctor said, ‘We need to take care of this. We need to take care of that.’ Nothing major, but I did have to cancel some things so I could be closer to home, closer to Vanderbilt (University Medical Center), where I’m kind of having a few treatments here and there.”
As word of Parton’s health challenges spread this week, so did misinformation. In her video message, Parton laughed as she recalled an AI-generated image of her with Reba McEntire.
“Oh, lordy. I mean, they had Reba at my deathbed, and we both look like we need to be buried.”
“There are a lot of rumors flying around, but I figured if you heard it from me, you’d know that I was okay,” she concluded.
“…I’m not ready to die yet. I don’t think God is through with me, and I ain’t done working. So I love you for caring, and keep praying for me.”
As she said, Parton is indeed “working hard,” as always. 2025 has seen the premiere of a musical inspired by her life and songs, a surprising collaboration with Motley Crue on “Home Sweet Home,” a new book, and plans for her own “Songteller” hotel in Nashville.
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/davepaulson/2025/10/08/dolly-parton-tells-fans-im-not-dying-after-public-concern/
