Today (January 19), country legend Dolly Parton is being honoured in her home state with her very own day.
On Thursday (January 15), Tennessee Governor Bill Lee signed a proclamation to officially designate today ‘Dolly Parton Day’ in honour of her 80th birthday, saying Parton’s life and career were woven into the state’s “music, culture, and rich history”.
“Her talent and generosity have made a lasting impact on the world,” Lee said, adding that it was “fitting that we honor her 80th birthday by celebrating her remarkable legacy and dedication to the Volunteer State.”
Her pride in her roots can be heard on 1973’s ‘My Tennessee Mountain Home’, an album-long ode to her rustic childhood. Its title track sees Parton reminisce on simple joys like sitting on the porch and listening to the hum of crickets, and later became the theme song for her Dollywood theme park.
In addition to the Grammy winner’s achievements in music and pop culture, the proclamation also nodded to Parton’s philanthropy. She is well known for her charitable endeavours through the Dollywood Foundation and the Imagination Library, which provides hundreds of millions of free books to children around the world each year.
“Dolly Parton’s generosity, humility, and dedication to improving the lives of others exemplify the values of the Volunteer State and serve as an inspiration to Tennesseans and people worldwide,” Lee wrote in his proclamation.
Ahead of Parton marking today’s milestone birthday, on Friday (January 16) she released a new version of 1977’s ‘Light Of A Clear Blue Morning’, featuring Queen Latifah, Reba McEntire, Lainey Wilson and her goddaughter Miley Cyrus to honour the song’s 50th anniversary.
The ‘Jolene’ hitmaker singer said she would donate proceeds from the song and it’s accompanying music video to the paediatric cancer research program at a children’s hospital in Nashville.
“I wrote ‘Light Of A Clear Blue Morning’ during a season when I was searching for hope, and 50 years later that message still feels just as true,” Parton said in a statement (via The Independent). “As I celebrate my 80th birthday, this new version is my way of using what I’ve been blessed with to shine a little light forward, especially by sharing it with some truly incredible women.”
The past year has brought for the Queen of Country. Back in March, Parton’s husband of nearly 60 years, Carl Thomas Dean, died at the age of 82. Following his passing, the country music legend said that she had put working on new songs “on hold” to cope with the loss.
In the weeks following Dean’s death, Parton said that she was “doing better than I thought I would”, and then released the poignant single ‘If You Hadn’t Been There’ in his honour – describing the significance he had in her life and his role in helping her become the person she is today.