Click here to read the full article.
The Dolly Parton estate has announced the first large public programs honoring the life and music of the late superstar, with events titled “DollyFest: The Celebration of a Lifetime” set to take place in Nashville and London
on successive weekends in 2027.
Dates have not yet been announced for the two-day festivals. The estate said that a DollyFest had already been planned for Nashville in January 2027, with the artist’s participation, and now will go on in her memory, with the addition of a separate London event.
This may be the closest that Parton fans get to a public memorial, as Danny Nozell, her longtime business partner and founder/CEO of CTK Enterprises, noted in a statement that “as far as a traditional memorial goes, that is not something Dolly wanted.”
An announcement for the festivals says that “what was originally planned as a multi-artist event for January 2026 in Nashville and intended to feature Parton as performer and host will now morph into a global double-day, double-weekend, double-continent party of a lifetime.”
Nozell said that the original plan had been to hold an event on her birthday this past Jan. 19. “What Dolly started, we will ensure is brought to life. Many people behind the scenes know that DollyFest is a dream of Dolly’s that was intended to take place on her 80th birthday in Nashville. We had the venue booked and we had the announcement ready to go. And then, in August 2025, Dolly had to take a step back after her initial health challenges. A lot of people always say, WWDD (What Would Dolly Do?), and, well, at this moment, DollyFest is WDWD (What Dolly Would Do!).”
Nozell suggested that the estate will not stand in the way of the many Parton tributes and memorials that are inevitable for this fall, but that this represents the estate’s official commemoration of her life, believing that she would want to be remembered via a festival more than any more solemn public occasion.
“We are not discouraging people from celebrating Dolly in the ways they choose,” he said. “However, as far as a traditional memorial goes, that is not something Dolly wanted. So, instead, it feels more appropriate for us to take a beat, let all the tributes that immediately make sense occur naturally, and then, see through this festival-style concept that was truly dreamed up by Dolly. This is something that is authentic to her, something that feels right to me, and something that artists and fans around the world can participate in, while also giving everyone time to grieve, and giving everyone time to plan.”
Details about the two festivals will be forthcoming soon, the estate said.
