North Texans remember Dolly Parton's music, kindness and legacy
Dolly Parton may have been a Tennessee native, but the country music icon had plenty of ties to Texas.
Parton, who died Tuesday at the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center in Nashville, performed at the Dallas Cowboys' Thanksgiving game in 2023, bringing her music to AT&T Stadium.
She also hosted the Academy of Country Music Awards in Frisco that same year, showing once again how much she loved the Lone Star State.
For young singer Leecie Paige, Parton was more than a music legend. She was an inspiration.
"I just have noticed she just she stays exactly what she wants to do from her heart, and it's really inspirational to me. So I love that about her."
Paige says Parton's rise from humble beginnings also resonated with her.
"I've had a lot of struggles myself with, you know, heartbreak and just family issues. All the things that she does talk a lot about in her music."
She says one of the biggest lessons she took from Parton is not letting hardship change who you are or how you treat other people.
Now, Paige performs Parton's music at the Truck Yard while chasing her own dreams.
"Code of Many Colors is a good one. I absolutely love that song. It's beautifully done, beautifully written."
And at the Truck Yard, Dolly tributes go beyond the music.
You can get a drink topped with a tiny Dolly – and every year, Truck Yard locations across Texas celebrate "Dolly Day."
The annual event features Dolly impersonators, her biggest hits, and even a costume contest for fans – including the four-legged kind.
As fans around the world mourn the loss of the country music icon, Paige says Parton's greatest gift was never just her music. It was the way she loved people.
"And she's never let the way that people have treated her in her life or the things that she's gone through in her life change how she views the world and how she writes music and how she loves people. I personally think she's just one of the best people to bless this planet, especially in the music industry."
And while Dolly may have asked Jolene to "please not take her man," her music isn't going anywhere.
From Nashville to North Texas, her songs, her spirit, and that unmistakable Dolly magic will live on.
