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Dolly Parton

What happened to Dolly Parton? Singer shares update after missing Dollywood event

Portrait of Taijuan Moorman Taijuan Moorman

USA TODAY
Aug. 17, 2026, 2:33 p.m. ET

Dolly Parton has missed an expected Dollywood appearance amid her ongoing health struggles.

Dollywood President Eugene Naughton introduced the country legend – who was previously set to attend the Friday, Aug. 14 opening of the theme park’s anticipated new ride, NightFlight Expedition – via a prerecorded video instead.

“Well, hey Eugene. I’m right here. Well, kind of. Sort of,” Parton said in the video, as captured by the Knoxville News Sentinel, part of the USA TODAY Network. “I’m still in Nashville, and I’m sorry about that. I was supposed to be there in person like I planned.”

The video showed Parton, 80, flashing her trademark smile, wearing a pink getup and fluttering butterfly wings to match as she provided fans with a health update.

“Now I’ve told you before, all my fans, that I’ve had a few little health issues, and sometimes I get a little dizzy, and I get dehydrated. And I’m dehydrated,” she said. “And so my Nashville doctor, who’s kind of clipped my wings, [is] saying, ‘You ain’t traveling this week.'”

Still, she assured fans she would “see you down the road.”

Dolly Parton’s health issues

In May, the “9 to 5” singer canceled a series of Las Vegas concerts and revealed that she had been suffering from multiple medical issues in recent years, including kidney stones. The announcement came seven months after she had postponed the shows, leading her sister, Freida Parton, to draw concern after asking for prayers for the singer.

“My immune system and my digestive system got all out of whack over the past three years. And [doctors] are working real hard on rebuilding and strengthening those,” Parton said at the time. “Just think of me as like an old classic car, that once restored can be better than ever.”

Parton appeared in high spirits in June, for the grand opening of her Tennessean Travel Stop in Cornersville, Tennessee, but has been seen sparingly otherwise.

Contributing: Edward Segarra, USA TODAY

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Original source: https://www.usatoday.com/entertainment/

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