Stella Parton, sister of the late country music legend Dolly Parton, has stated that she has not received any condolences from the Nashville music community in the weeks following her sister's death on August 25. Dolly Parton passed away at the age of 80 after a brief battle with an undisclosed cancer.
In an interview with CBS Mornings, Stella Parton, 77, shared that the silence from the Tennessee music scene has been palpable as she mourns her sister. "I haven't heard from anybody in Nashville since my sister passed away," she told Gayle King. "I haven't had one condolence from anyone – anybody that I know, entertainers that I know. Nobody. Not one."
Stella Parton speculated that her own public political activism on social media might be contributing to the lack of outreach. "I'm assuming it might be because of my political, you know, activism on social media. I don't know," she said.
In contrast to her sister's vocal stance on political matters, Dolly Parton was famously reserved about her personal political views. Stella Parton described her older sister as a "good businesswoman" who was astute enough to avoid alienating fans. "She never would have done that. She was smarter than me," Stella said, referring to Dolly's public approach to her opinions. "I tell everything. And I like everybody knowing what I think about it. Not her!"
Stella Parton also shared personal anecdotes about her relationship with Dolly, noting that she never saw her sister without makeup after Dolly achieved stardom. She recalled that Dolly would even sleep in her makeup when visiting her. When asked if she had ever seen Dolly without her signature glam, Stella quipped, "Oh, I knew what she looked like, of course! Because she looked like me without her makeup, so I knew what she looked like without it."
The Parton siblings grew up in the Tennessee mountains, with Dolly being one of 12 children. Throughout her career, Dolly Parton often spoke about her commitment to maintaining a glamorous image in public. In a 1994 interview with David Letterman, she stated, "If I'm going to go out in public, I think the people expect to see me look like a star; I expect to look like a star." She noted exceptions were rare, such as visits to her lake house or time with her late husband, Carl Dean. In a 2014 interview with Wendy Williams, she echoed this sentiment, saying she never answered the door without makeup or hair, even due to concerns about earthquakes in California, as she wanted to be camera-ready at all times.