Dolly Parton

Dolly Parton was born in Sevier County, Tennessee to a tobacco farmer and his wife. Throughout her life and career, Parton rose to be the most honored female country performer of all time. She has 41 career top ten country albums and has won numerous Grammys, American Music Awards, and Country Music Association Awards, amongst others.

Some of her many chart toppers are singles like “Jolene” and “I Will Always Love You,” famously covered by the late Whitney Houston for the 1992 soundtrack of The Bodyguard; Houston’s version cemented the ballad as one of the most popular (and heartbreaking) singles of all time. Parton has also brought her southern sass to numerous films, such as Steel Magnolias and The Best Little Whorehouse In Texas.

The country legend is also the co-founder of The Dollywood Company in Tennessee which operates the theme park Dollywood, a dinner theater, Dolly Parton’s Dixie Stampede, and the waterpark Dollywood’s Splash Country.

The country megastar married Carl Thomas Dean in 1966. Parton announced in March 2025 that Dean died at the age of 82. Although they didn’t have any children of their own, Parton is the godmother of another superstar, Miley Cyrus.