Dolly Parton on Being Busier Than Ever: “I Can’t Stop Now”

At 75-years-old, Dolly Parton’s schedule is jam-packed with projects including a beauty business, a production deal with Netflix, a book, and more. 

“I keep dreaming myself into a corner!” Parton admits in a recent interview. “But I can’t stop now. I’ve learned you can’t just say, ‘Oh, my dream’s come true and I’m walking out of here.’ No, you’ve got to show you’re grateful and show that you’re not going to just leave it all in the hands of other people.”

Parton, who is one of People Magazine’s 2021 People of the Year, is becoming more and more commonly known as a major philanthropist. 

“I’m kind of addicted to the feeling of giving,” the Queen of Country says. “Knowing that I’m doing something good for someone else.”

With a $1 million donation to Vanderbilt University in Nashville that funded research for the Moderna vaccine, $700,000 raised for flood victims in Tennessee, her Imagination Library project, and many other benevolent acts, Parton misses no opportunity to give in big ways and is yet so humble about it all. 

“I am not all that,” she suggests. “I’m glad that I stand for enough stuff to where I’m not the worst person in the world.”

— 

Photo credit: DFree / Shutterstock.com