Dolly Parton has a lot she is working on right now, but one thing she is not doing is making new music. The 79-year-old says that writing more songs so soon after losing her husband, Carl Dean, is more than she is able to handle right now.
“[There are] several things I have wanted to start, but I can’t do it,” Parton admits on Khloé Kardashian’s Khloé in Wonder Land podcast (via People).
“I will later,” she continues. “I’m just coming up with such wonderful, beautiful ideas, but I think I won’t finish it. I can’t do it right now, because I got so many other things.”
Parton, who has enjoyed a 60-year career by writing and releasing deeply personal songs, says that it’s just too soon for her to be able to write anything about Dean right now.
“I can’t afford the luxury of getting that emotional right now,” Parton explains. “There are times like that, things like that, that will stall you a little bit. But I’ll write something else though, if it comes.”
“I’m just putting that all on hold,” she adds.
Dean passed away on March 3, 2025. Although he is not with her, Parton still feels his presence, wherever she goes.
“I really feel his presence,” Parton tells The Independent. “I just try to go on, because I know I have to. And he was ill for quite a while, and part of me was at peace that he was at peace and not suffering anymore. But that still doesn’t make up for the loss and the loneliness of it.”
View this post on Instagram
Parton may not be able to write music, but she is definitely keeping busy. Parton is currently putting the finishing touches on her Dolly: An Original Musical, premiering in Nashville later this month. She is also building her Songteller Hotel, in addition to all of her other business ventures, including cosmetics, perfume, wine, frozen meals, Duncan Hines cake mixes and more.
For the Country Music Hall of Fame member, it’s a way to honor Dean, who passed away shortly before their 59th wedding anniversary.
“When I did lose him, I just thought, ‘Well, I’m going to take all of that energy, and I’m just going to put that back into other things, and I’ll keep him ever-present in everything that I do.'”
Parton was just 18 when she met Dean, which is why it is so hard for her to now go on without him, after spending her entire adult life with him by her side.
“I see him every day in my memories and in my heart,” Parton says, “and in all the things that we used to do and all the things that we’ve built together. You just kind of have to learn to kind of make new plans – but that’s the hardest part.”
Parton released “If You Hadn’t Been There” shortly after Dean passed away. Keep track of all of Parton’s updates at DollyParton.com.