Dolly Parton wanted a big, glitzy party for her 80th birthday.
The country music icon planned to host and perform at a star-studded festival earlier this year. A venue was booked and an announcement was ready, but her health postponed the plans.
Now, the "9 to 5" singer's estate is bringing the celebration she envisioned to life with more music, more sparkle and a second continent.
The Estate of Dolly Parton announced on Aug. 31 that "DOLLYFEST: The Celebration of a Lifetime" will take place across two consecutive weekends in 2027 in both Nashville and London. The celebration will transform Parton's original birthday festival into a two-continent event honoring her life and legacy.
"What Dolly started, we will ensure is brought to life," Danny Nozell,
Parton's longtime manager and founder and CEO of CTK Enterprises, said in a statement.
Nozell said Parton had been deeply involved in plans for the original Nashville event before health problems forced her to step back in August 2025.
"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," Nozell said. "We had the venue booked and we had the announcement ready to go."
Parton died on Aug. 25, 2026, after a brief battle with cancer.
When is DOLLYFEST?
Specific dates, venues, performers and ticket information for DOLLYFEST have not yet been announced. The estate said more details will be released later.
The festival will follow other events, shows and programs expected to honor the rhinestone-clad entertainer this fall. But her team said DOLLYFEST will be the official celebration Parton herself envisioned, not a traditional memorial.
"We are not discouraging people from celebrating Dolly in the ways they choose," Nozell said. "However, as far as a traditional memorial goes, that is not something Dolly wanted."
Nozell said waiting until 2027 will allow immediate tributes to occur naturally while giving artists and fans time to grieve and plan.
"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," he said.
Dolly Parton's projects continue
DOLLYFEST joins a long list of projects Parton left in development.
Parton's team told The Tennessean after her death that she spent her final years working with a handpicked group on a roadmap intended to guide her businesses and creative projects for decades.
Her SongTeller Hotel and 20,000-square-foot Life of Many Colors Museum in downtown Nashville are scheduled for grand openings on Sept. 29. "DOLLY: A True Original Musical" is expected to begin Broadway previews Dec. 7, before opening Jan. 19, 2027.
Other projects in development include unreleased music, a Dolly avatar show, biopic, docuseries and scripted series.
"Dolly worked up until the day she died," Nozell said Aug. 26. "She loved seeing her dreams come to life, and loved knowing her work brought people joy."
Bryan West is a music reporter at The Tennessean, part of the USA TODAY Network. Follow him on Instagram, TikTok and X as @BryanWestTV.
This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: What is DOLLYFEST? Inside Dolly Parton's star-studded celebration
