Dolly Parton loves to perform, but her days of touring are a thing of the past. The 76-year-old says she no longer plans to do any major tours, although she will still sing when she can.
“I do not think I will ever tour again, but I do know I’ll do special shows here and there, now and then,” Parton tells Pollstar. “Maybe do a long weekend of shows, or just a few shows at a festival. But I have no intention of going on a full-blown tour anymore. I’ve done that my whole life, and it takes so much time and energy.”
Parton acknowledges that it’s her husband, Carl Dean, whom she married in 1966 — and has been fully supportive of her career since its inception — is part of the reason she wants to be off of the road.
“I like to stay a little closer to home with my husband,” Parton acknowledges. “We’re getting older now, and I don’t want to be gone for four or five weeks at a time. Something could happen. I would not feel right about that, if I were gone and somebody needed me. Or I would feel bad if I had to leave a tour if somebody got sick at home and needed me and then I had to walk out on the fans.”
Parton might be done touring, but she certainly isn’t ready to retire. The Country Music Hall of Fame member still enjoys writing and creating, including penning all of the songs on the forthcoming Run, Rose, Run movie, based on the novel of the same name, which she wrote with James Patterson.
“I wouldn’t say that I’m trying to do anything other than what comes along that feels right at the time,” Parton says. “I can kind of pick and choose these days, at my age and the years that I’ve been in the business.”
Parton is also doing a Christmas movie, Dolly Parton’s Mountain Magic Christmas, which will air later this year on NBC. Parton is always thinking about what to do next, always looking for something she can still do, although she says she no longer writes just to write.
“I don’t [write] unless I have a project,” acknowledges Parton. “If I’ve been commissioned to do something or something I feel inspired like when I wrote 19 songs for the Run, Rose, Run book or the Christmas movie that we did. I write all the time. I’ll just scribble something down. I’m always coming up with an idea. That’s something that comes so natural to me. That is my greatest joy, to write songs and then record them and hear what I’ve done.”
Dolly Parton’s Mountain Magic Christmas stars Jimmy Fallon, Willie Nelson, Miley Cyrus, Billy Ray Cyrus, Tom Everett Scott, Ana Gasteyer and more. Zach Williams and Jimmie Allen will also appear as guest stars. The movie is scheduled to premiere on December 1.
Parton will receive another career accolade later this year, when she is inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, alongside Lionel Richie, Pat Benatar, Duran Duran, Eurythmics, Carly Simon and Eminem, The ceremony will take place on November 5 at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles, California.
Click here to subscribe to our YouTube channel.
