6 Musicians Who Praised Dolly Parton: ‘Wish I Was Half the Woman She Is’
Dolly Parton’s songwriting, vocals, and bubbly personality have won her many fans, including some of her fellow musicians. A number of artists have praised Parton’s music and the influence she has had on them. Others have talked about the warmth of her personality when they meet her. Here are six artists who have had nothing but good things to say about Parton.
Garth Brooks and Trisha Yearwood admire all of her music
Parton and Garth Brooks recently became the co-hosts of the Academy of Country Music Awards, and he hasn’t been shy about sharing his appreciation of his co-host. He performed at the MusiCares Person of the Year gala in 2019 when she was the recipient and admitted that he had difficulty picking his favorite Parton song.
“You just said ‘Dolly song,'” he told Vulture. “If it’s a Dolly song, you do it, you crank it up because her voice holds up when you crank it up.”
His wife, Trisha Yearwood, agreed.
“And the songs are timeless,” she said. “‘Jolene’ to ‘Daddy,’ ‘9 to 5’ to ‘Old Flames,’ that voice — I mean, forget it. I don’t know what we were thinking: We’re going to sing a Dolly song tonight in front of her? … I’ll never get to that level, but she is a woman who continues to work harder than anybody, and inspires me to work hard.”
Brooks doubled down on his admiration of Parton.
“Yeah, Amen,” he said. “I wish I was half the woman she is. Man, she’s ballsy. I love her.”
Miranda Lambert said most musicians should take inspiration from Dolly Parton
As a woman in country music, Parton has paved the way for younger artists like Miranda Lambert. Lambert said that she finds Parton incredibly inspirational.
“Dolly is a big one for me,” she told Esquire, “because it’s so much more than just the records — that’s where it starts and ends, and that’s why we all love Dolly. But the movies and the charity work and the theme park and the book, now she’s on a dang cupcake box, what else can she do? That’s something we should all strive for, to take our brand, take our songs, and grow them and touch people’s lives in all kinds of ways.”
Taylor Swift received praise from Dolly Parton and couldn’t believe it
Though Parton doesn’t think Taylor Swift should play her in a movie, she has spoken about how much she likes the younger artist. Swift said that hearing this was one of the greatest gifts of her life.
“I need nothing else for my birthday this year,” she wrote on Twitter. “Or any other year. Ever. This is it. I love you Dolly.”
Kacey Musgraves said Dolly Parton is 1 of the most influential musicians to her
Kacey Musgraves has paid tribute to Parton by covering her music. She also said that Parton has influenced her in nearly every way possible.
“I mean, how has she not influenced me in my career?” Musgraves asked Billboard. “Let’s be honest, she’s just the ultimate songwriter. My favorite thing about Dolly is that she has all of these components perfectly melded together: beauty, sex appeal, brains, wit, humor, beautiful songwriting, meaningful songwriting, no apologies for who she is, LGBTQ advocate long before it was even a thing or trendy, whatever. She’s fearless, and I admire her spirit a lot. And she’s very kind, she’s very present when you’re talking to her, and I really love her so much.”
Miley Cyrus praised her ‘fairy godmother’
Miley Cyrus has been close with Parton for the entirety of her life; Parton is even her “fairy godmother.” When Time Magazine named Parton one of their Most Influential People of 2021, Cyrus wrote about her.
“There’s a theory that you shouldn’t meet your heroes, but I wish everyone had the chance to meet Dolly Parton, because she’s even better than your sparkliest dreams,” Cyrus wrote. “She may be my fairy godmother, but I think she’s that to everyone else too. I am happy to share her with the world.”
