Dolly Parton is no strange name in the world of music. Fresh off the release of her 42nd album and with sales of more than 100 million records under her belt, she is still growing her empire – a great feat for a once dirt-poor youngster with ‘crazy’ dreams.
2014 marks the 50th year the 68-year-old international country music legend started her career in Nashville, Tennessee, USA. The fourth of 12 siblings who once shared a one-room cabin, she was so poor growing up that her father paid the doctor who delivered her with a bag of cornmeal.
The day after her high school graduation, Parton left her hometown for Nashville where she shepherded her career – from singing on ‘The Porter Wagoner Show’, a syndicated music-variety series that aired from 1960 to 1981 – to winning eight Grammys and scoring 25 No. 1 songs on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart, a record for a female artist.
On a recent fall afternoon at a Nashville studio, Parton was an animated conversationalist, displaying a down-home, self-effacing charm that belies her status as the creative mastermind of an entertainment empire.
In the interview with The Hollywood Reporter, she opened up about her business, her often-criticised sense of style and work ethics:
How are you different now from the girl who came to Nashville in 1964?
I’m more successful now than I was then, but I still feel like the same girl. I’m just a working girl. I never think of myself as a star because, as somebody once said, “A star is nothing but a big ball of gas” – and I don’t want to be that.
What do you think about how people revere you?
I’m sure there are lots of people out there who would like to smack my head off, but we won’t talk about them. I’ve lived a lot and I’ve done a lot. I’ve been around so long that I think people just kind of feel like I’m a member of their family – like a favourite aunt or an older sister. People relate to me because I grew up poor and in a big family. They know I understand all the hardships.
Dollywood, your amusement park, attracts lots of church groups, but it also has become a draw for the LGBT community. What does that say about you?
It’s a place for entertainment, a place for all families, period. It’s for all that. But as far as the Christians, if people want to pass judgement, they’re already sinning. The sin of judging is just as bad as any other sin they might say somebody else is committing. I try to love everybody.
You have a large gay following. To what do you attribute that?
They know that I completely love and accept them, as I do all people. I’ve struggled enough in my life to be appreciated and understood. I think everybody should be allowed to be who they are and to love who they love. I don’t think we should be judgmental. Lord, I’ve got enough problems of my own to pass judgement on somebody else.
As a Southern woman, how do you speak your mind and take care of business but remain likeable?
I’m open and I’m honest. I don’t dillydally. Sometimes if I get mad, I’ll throw out a few cuss words just to prove my point. I’ve often said I don’t lose my temper as much as I use it. I don’t do either unless I have to because I love peace and harmony, but when you step in my territory, I will call you on it.
What advice do you give women going into business?
You need to really believe in what you’ve got to offer, what your talent is – and if you believe, that gives you strength. In my early days, I would go in, and I was always over-made, with my boobs sticking out, my clothes too tight, and so I really looked like easy prey to a lot of guys – just looked easy, period. But I would go in, and if they were not paying close attention to what I was saying, I always said, “I look like a woman, but I think like a man and you better pay attention or I’ll have your money and I’ll be gone.”
Are you familiar with Sheryl Sandberg’s [Facebook COO] book, ‘Lean In’?
What is it?
‘Lean In’ – it’s a book. Have you ever “leaned in”?
I’ve leaned over. I’ve leaned forward. I don’t know what “leaned in” is. Lean in to God.
How many houses?
We have a place in [Los Angeles] and a couple of places here [in Tennessee]: on the lake, then we have the office complex, and I have the old [East Tennessee] place at home. They are investments. It’s not to say, I’d rather buy property than play the stock market.
What’s next on your agenda?
I’m still working on my musical and I’m hoping to do my life story as a movie. Eventually, I will get into the cosmetics and the jewellery, but right now, I’m just focused on music.
When you go somewhere public like ‘Cracker Barrel’, do you go in full makeup or in disguise?
I hardly go out much anymore. I just send somebody after the stuff I like. But if I go anywhere, I go in full disguise. I’m afraid somebody will recognise me and say, “Oh, did you see Dolly? She looked like hell.” I’d rather have them say, “Did you see Dolly? She’s so overdone.”
More about Dolly Parton
Born January 19, 1946, Dolly Rebecca Parton is an American singer-songwriter, instrumentalist, actress, author, and philanthropist, known for her work in country music.
She is the most honoured female country performer of all time. Achieving 25 RIAA certified gold, platinum, and multi-platinum awards, she has had 25 songs reach No. 1 on the Billboard Country charts, a record for a female artist.
She has 41 career top 10 country albums, a record for any artist, and she has 110 career charted singles over the past 40 years. All-inclusive sales of singles, albums, hits collections, and digital downloads during her career have topped 100 million worldwide.
She has garnered eight Grammy Awards, two Academy Award nominations, 10 Country Music Association Awards, seven Academy of Country Music Awards, three American Music Awards, and is one of only seven female artists to win the Country Music Association’s Entertainer of the Year Award.
Parton has received 46 Grammy nominations, tying her with Beyoncé for the most Grammy nominations for a woman and placing her in eighth place overall.
In 1999, she was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame. She has composed over 3,000 songs, the best known of which include ‘I Will Always Love You’ (a two-time U.S. country chart-topper for her, as well as an international pop hit for Whitney Houston), ‘Jolene’, ‘Coat of Many Colours’, ‘9 to 5’, and ‘My Tennessee Mountain Home’.
Parton is also one of the few to have received at least one nomination from the Academy Awards, Grammy Awards, Tony Awards, and Emmy Awards.
Poor Parents
Born in Sevier County, Tennessee, she is the fourth of twelve children of Robert Parton, a tobacco farmer, and Avie Lee (née Owens).
Parton has described her family as being “dirt poor”. Her father paid the doctor who helped deliver her with a bag of oatmeal. She outlined her family’s poverty in her early songs: ‘Coat of Many Colours’ and ‘In the Good Old Days (When Times Were Bad)’. They lived in a rustic, one-room cabin in Locust Ridge, just north of the Greenbrier Valley of the Great Smoky Mountains, a predominantly Pentecostal area.
Her grandfather was a Pentecostal church minister and many of her early performances were in the church, along with her family.
Her business ventures
In 1998, Nashville Business ranked her to be the wealthiest country music star. Parton invested much of her earnings into business ventures in her native East Tennessee. She is a co-owner of The Dollywood Company, which was ranked as the 24th most popular theme park in the United States, with about three million visitors per year.
Apart from her Dollywood company, she also announced plans with the owners of luxurious resort and convention centre, Gaylord Opryland, in 2012 to open a $50m (NN8.3bn) water and snow park, a fun and family-friendly travel destination in Nashville.
Parton is also a co-owner of a film and television production company, Sandollar Productions.
Meanwhile, she has unveiled plans for a massive Dollywood expansion with two roller coasters and a luxury hotel at a cost of $300m (N49.5bn). The park will now include a 300-room luxury hotel.
The resort hotel has been her dream ever since she affixed her name to the theme park 28 years ago. “The thing we’re most excited about is finally building our resort,” she said. We’re starting out with a resort that has 300 rooms. Some of the rooms will accommodate up to six people in a family.”
Other investments
To put it straight – Parton is more of an entrepreneur than a music legend.
The 68-year-old once listed her West Hollywood crash pad for $1.4m (N231m) and it is definitely a long way from Nashville.
Described as a ‘whimsical oasis’ by real estate expert, Trulia, the home exudes eccentric charm with cactus and country meets pink gingham and cottage touches.
Decorated in a slightly outdated style with a hint of rustic furniture, at a cosy size of just over 1,000 square foot, the home features hardwood floors throughout, skylights, fireplaces and natural French wood shutters.
With at least 15 other properties to her name, it is not known how much time Dolly spends at the home, but the master bedroom would have been a great escape from the hustle and bustle of Hollywood.
Parton’s acquisitions are a manifestation of an icon who is reportedly worth $450m (N74.3bn).
Sources: hollywoodreporter.com, inquisitr.com, dollypartonentertainment.com
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