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Dolly Parton said she doesn’t view herself as a star, despite the Country Music Hall of Fame member’s global fame for several decades.
Parton, turning 79 later this month, recently caught up with Southern Living for the magazine’s January/February cover story. The interview arrives as Parton marks the 40th anniversary of Dollywood, her iconic amusement park in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. The beloved country artist spoke about Dollywood, her favorite treat at the park, how the Smoky Mountains have inspired her music and why she doesn’t see herself as a star.
“I think I’m a star to everybody but me,” Parton said. “I always wanted to be famous, but nobody could have thought of the extent it became. I’ll see a whole wall of my pictures somewhere, and I’ll wonder, ‘How did that happen?’ It’s more a joy than a surprise.”
Parton embraced her passion for music during her childhood in East Tennessee. She soon realized her skill for storytelling through song, and told Southern Living that she often thinks about writing music while living her day-to-day life. “I’ll walk into a closet and wonder, ‘Now, what in the hell did I come in here for?’ There’s nothing that makes me happier than writing a song.
“A lot of songs make me think of the Smoky Mountains. Most of them I wrote myself,” she said. “The song Tennessee Mountain Home reminds me a lot of the Smokies. And of course it’s just about every day living in the Smokies, sitting on the front porch on a straight back chair leaned against the wall and watching June bugs and fireflies at night…But as a kid growing up there, I was proud of those mountains. And as a kid that is all grown up now, I’m even prouder of them than ever.”
Parton also gushed that she’s proud of Dollywood. The park has “something for everyone,” including performances, food (her go-to is “the funnel cakes we’re famous for”), the resorts and more. Find Parton’s interview here, and find the Southern Living issue on stands on January 17, two days before Parton’s 79th birthday.