DollyFest to Honor Parton’s Legacy
Dolly Parton’s legacy will explode across the globe in 2027 with two massive DollyFest celebrations. The country icon was laid to rest Friday in a private ceremony attended only by family and close friends, her estate confirmed Monday.
Two events titled “DollyFest: The Celebration of a Lifetime” will land on successive weekends — one in Nashville, the other in London — in 2027. The estate says planning began before Parton’s death, with a Nashville kickoff originally slated for January 2026.
Danny Nozell, Parton’s longtime business partner and CEO of CTK Enterprises, said the singer never wanted a public funeral, insisting DollyFest would let fans celebrate her life. “As far as a traditional memorial goes, that is not something Dolly wanted,” he added.
He explained that the festival was meant to mark her 80th birthday and that the venue and program were already secured before her health declined in August 2025. “What Dolly started, we will ensure is brought to life,” Nozell said.
Nozell emphasized the shift from a single‑artist event to a global double‑day, double‑weekend party, noting that the change honors what Dolly would have done. “We are not discouraging people from celebrating Dolly in the ways they choose; we simply want to take a beat, let tributes unfold, then launch the festival,” he concluded.
Parton passed away Tuesday after a brief battle with an undisclosed cancer. She was 80.
