Dolly Parton Dead: She Wants to Be Buried in Cotton After Life in Rhineston

“By her example, we believed that anything was possible,” he said. “She never saw a door she couldn’t open, and the doors she opened made and changed history. My family and I have shared a lifetime of beautiful memories with Dolly but so have you.”

Before her death, the “9 to 5” hitmaker shared she was dealing with various health complications, which forced her to take a step back from the spotlight.

“I’ve been not touring, as you know,” Parton said during a rare in-person appearance at her Dollywood theme park in March. “I’ve had a few little health issues, and we’re taking good care of them.”

Parton added that she needed some time to recover after getting “worn down and worn out grieving over” her late husband Carl Dean, who died at 82 in March 2025.

At the time, she shut down any rumors that she’d be retiring.

“I’ve just been doing a lot of writing, a lot of thinking, a lot of praying and a lot of getting ready for a lot of new stuff coming up for the rest of this whole year,” she shared. “So, be ready for me. I ain’t done, I ain’t near done.”

Keep reading for a look back at Parton’s life in pictures.