'Dazzling' Dolly Parton: How Taylor Swift Remembers the Music Icon

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - As Hollywood reels from the death of legendary country music singer and philanthropist, Dolly Parton, tributes pour in from her industry peers, including Taylor Swift. 

“A world without Dolly doesn’t feel possible, real, or right,” the billionaire singer-songwriter said in a statement, as quoted from The Hollywood Reporter, on Wednesday, August 26, 2026.

“But because of the eternally generous way she spent her time on this earth and the countless lives she changed for the better, her legacy will be an everlasting one.”

Swift remembered Parton as "someone to look up to" and a "true grace and true grit, all in one dazzling person."

"She possessed the softest heart when it came to the struggles of others, and a backbone of steel to defend her own self worth as an artist,” the 14-time Grammy winner added.

“Along with her other fans, I am so grateful for all of it. For the melodies and lyrics she wrote that thawed even the coldest hearts. For the millions of books she provided children all over the world so that they might fall in love with stories the way she did. For the tightropes she walked so that young girls like me could grow up dreaming of joining the circus too."

"Dolly, I'll think of you each step of the way," Swift concluded.

Dolly Parton passed away at age 80 after a "brief battle with cancer," according to PEOPLE. Her nephew, Bryan Seaver, confirmed her death in an Instagram video shared earlier in the day. 

The "Jolene" singer has canceled her Las Vegas residency in May after postponing it last September to deal with "some health challenges," The Hollywood Reporter reported. 

Taylor Swift Donated to Parton's Imagination Library Program

One of her last social media posts was shared on Instagram, thanking Taylor Swift and husband Travis Kelce for their donation to Parton's Imagination Library—a literacy program that gifts monthly free books to children under the age of 5.

The donation was part of the Swift and Kelce's $26 million donation to varying organizations just ahead of their wedding at Maddison Square Garden.

“Taylor and Travis, it’s Dolly, and I was just told that you two were making a donation of $2 million to my Imagination Library,” she said in the video, posted on July 3. "I’m blown away and overjoyed with that gratitude.”

Before concluding the video, Parton joked, "Now, it’s evident, that you have made giving back a key part of your lives, so hey, when you have your firstborn, can I have it? Because that is gonna be one special baby!”

Taylor Swift: "Dolly Is a Force of Evolution"

Taylor Swift, 36, debuted as a country singer before gaining massive crossover success, Variety noted, and she previously reflected on Dolly Parton's legacy in a 2023 interview with The Hollywood Reporter.

Swift described Parton as a "force of evolution and transformation” in the music business and a “storyteller for the ages.”

“She’s never stopped challenging herself to clear new hurdles and explore new territory artistically, and I think that speaks to her great curiosity about the human condition," she said at the time.

Meanwhile, in a 2024 interview with Variety, Parton championed Taylor Swift as "a great inspiration."

“I just admire her very much and how she’s handled her business, her personal life, and what all she has meant to so many young people," said the "I Will Always Love You" singer.

Read: Dolly Parton Net Worth: How Much Was the Country Legend Worth?

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