Country music legend Dolly Parton has announced she will not attend her 80th birthday celebration at Grand Ole Opry, months after postponing Las Vegas shows for medical procedures
Dolly Parton has sparked fresh concern amongst fans after revealing she won’t be attending her 80th birthday celebration.
The country music legend, who was born on 19 January 1946, shared a video message with the venue where her special event was due to take place, confirming she wouldn’t be making an appearance at the concert. The announcement follows a string of show cancellations connected to Dolly’s wellbeing.
The video was posted by the Grand Ole Opry, a renowned live country music broadcast channel based in Nashville, Tennessee. In the footage, Dolly speaks directly to the camera whilst wearing a white button-up shirt featuring yellow accents, teamed with figure-hugging jeans.
“Well, hey there Grand Ole Opry family,” she begins in the clip. “I just wanted to say how much it means to me that you’re all coming together again this year to celebrate my big ol’ birthday with some of my songs.
“Some of my favourite memories happened right here on stage at the Grand Ole Opry,” she adds. “And I wish I could be there in person, but I’ll be sending you all my love, for sure.” Whilst fans initially expressed worry about Dolly’s health, a spokesperson subsequently clarified that she had never intended to attend the celebration.
“She was never intending to be there and she was never promoted to be there, so she’s not pulling out of anything. She was never going,” they explained. Back in September 2024, Dolly informed supporters that she needed to postpone her highly-anticipated Las Vegas residency owing to medical concerns.
The star was told by her doctors that she will have to postpone her upcoming Las Vegas concerts due to health issues that require medical procedures. In a heartfelt post, Dolly informed her fans at the time: “I want the fans and public to hear directly from me that, unfortunately, I will need to postpone my upcoming Las Vegas concerts. As many of you know, I have been dealing with some health challenges, and my doctors tell me that I must have a few procedures.”
The country music legend lightened the mood by joking that she had told her doctors it “must be time for my 100,000 mile check-up, although it’s the usual trip to see my plastic surgeon.”
However, on a more serious note, she expressed: “Given this, I am not going to be able to rehearse and put together the show that I want you to see, and the show that you deserve to see. You pay good money to see me perform, and I want to be at my best for you.”
She reassured fans that while she’ll be working on her projects from Nashville, she needs some time to prepare for her shows. The Coat of Many Colours singer also made it clear that she has no plans to retire, stating: “And don’t worry about me quittin’ the business because God hasn’t said anything about stopping yet. But, I believe He is telling me to slow down right now so I can be ready for more big adventures with all of you.”
She ended her message with a heartfelt thank you to her fans, saying: “I love you and thank you for understanding.”
Source: Mirror
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