Country music legend Dolly Parton has died at the age of 80.
The Jolene hitmaker’s death was announced on Tuesday, August 25 (Wednesday, August 26 AEST) by her nephew, Brian Seaver, who worked as Dolly’s head of security.
“My name is Brian Seaver, son of Cassie Parton, and I’m representing the Parton and Owens family today, announcing the passing of my aunt, Dolly Rebecca Parton Dean, Sister, Sis and Granny to one generation and Gigi to the next,” he said in a video shared to Dolly’s Instagram.
“This video announcement is something Dolly asked of me years ago, before I fully absorbed it as a future reality.
“As her head of security for more than two decades, a role my father Larry held before me, I have imagined the heaviness of this moment but haven’t truly felt it til now.”
No further details have been announced about her death, but she is expected to be farewelled in a small, private service, with only her immediate family attending.
Her cause of death has not been confirmed, but Dolly has been battling a series of health issues in recent years.
Tributes flock in for the icon
The globe has been sent into mourning, with Julia Roberts, who starred alongside Dolly in Steel Magnolias, leading the tributes.
“I hold knowing her as a treasure in my life,” she said.
“The sun has dimmed today.”
Jamie-Lee Curtis also shared a photograph with Dolly alongside some heartfelt words.
“Her bravery to know that she was more than they thought she was and that she needed to break away and move on into new work and new possibilities led her to write I WILL ALWAYS LOVE YOU, as her way of thanking and loving, but moving on. She is a great example for us all,” she penned.
Sarah Jessica Parker, a huge fan of Dolly’s, echoed the globe’s outpouring of love for her in a social media tribute.
“I never met Dolly Parton but my gosh, did I love her,” the Sex & The City star gushed.
“I don’t think any of us had to know her to love her. One of the greatest this country ever produced. Legend. For real.”
Country music star Kacey Musgraves wrote on X, “Dolly. This really, really hurts. The world feels a lot less sparkly all of a sudden.”
Her health struggles
Dolly had been open about her health struggles over the past year, which led to her cancelling her Las Vegas residency.
She had initially postponed her December 2025 residency for almost a year, until September 2026, before cancelling it.
Sharing the news to Instagram on May 5, she shared that she had some “healing to do” amid an undisclosed health condition.
“It’s gonna take me a little while before I’m up to stage performance level because some of the meds and treatments make me a little bit “swimmy headed” as my grandma used to say,” she said at the time.
“And of course, I can’t be dizzy carrying around banjos, guitars and such on five-inch heels. And you know that I’m going to be wearing them!”
Dolly explained that she’d “always had problems with kidney stones”, but her immune and digestive systems had suffered over the past three years.
She had previously shared how she had undergone a “few procedures” but kept the details private.
Sadly, Dolly was never able to return to the stage. She last performed on March 14, 2025, for the opening day of Dollywood’s 40th anniversary year, just days after her husband Carl Dean’s death.
Dolly’s devastating grief
Dolly was left heartbroken and never recovered following the death of her husband of nearly 60-years, Carl.
Carl passed away on March 3, 2025, at the age of 82, and Dolly told how she had neglected her health following his death.
“When my husband Carl was sick, that was for a long time, and then when he passed, I didn’t take care of myself,” she shared in September 2025.
“I let a lot of things go that I should’ve been taking care of, so anyway, when I got around to it, the doctor said, we need to take care of this. We need to take care of that.”
Dolly fell in love with Carl when she was just 18 years old.
