Iconic country musician Dolly Parton has died at the age of 80, her family announced on her social media.
“Sadness lies with us, not with Dolly,” Parton’s nephew Brian Seaver said in a video announcement. “Dolly lived in the light and is in the arms of Jesus, surely.”
Dolly Parton was around six when she wrote her first song: “Little Tiny Tasseltop,” an ode to her corncob doll with corn-silk hair. Her mother stored it preciously in a shoebox.
“I loved that little doll,” Parton wrote decades later. “I expressed myself and my feelings through writing – I’m sure what I was thinking was, ‘Well, Tasseltop has to have a song about her.'”
Parton never stopped making music after that.
She won 11 Grammy awards, including a Lifetime Achievement Award.
With classic songs including “Coat of Many Colors,” “Jolene” and “I Will Always Love You,” she became one of the best-selling female artists of all time, with over 100 million records sold.
Parton’s wholesome personality, combined with her towering blond hairdos, flamboyant costumes and giddy delight at holding center stage, endeared her to Americans of all backgrounds and helped introduce country music to international audiences.
Over the years Parton hosted a TV variety show, starred in movies, and even created a theme park, Dollywood, a popular tourist spot in her home state of Tennessee – all in addition to her lauded work as a songwriter.
(BBC NEWS)