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Dolly Parton is alive, folks.
And seemingly pretty well.
One day after her sister Freida told folks she’d been “up all night praying” for the star, the legendary artist addressed concerns about her recent health issues in a video posted to social media.
In short? She’s not dead, Parton claims.
Talking to fans from the set doing some commercials for the Grand Ole Opry, the singer said that “lately everybody thinks that I am sicker than I am,” continuing as follows:
“Do I look sick to you? I’m working hard here! Anyway, I wanted to put everybody’s mind at ease, those of you that seem to be real concerned, which I appreciate.
“I appreciate your prayers, ’cause I’m a person of faith. I can always use the prayers for anything and everything. But I want you to know that I’m okay.”
Parton went on to note that some of her “problems” were connected to the aftermath of her husband Carl Dean’s death in March, when she neglected her own health.
The spouses were married for 58 years before Dean passed away on March 3 at age 82.
“Back when my husband Carl was very sick, that was for a long time, and then when he passed, I didn’t take care of myself, so I let a lot of things go that I should’ve been taking care of,” she went on.
“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.
“Nothing major, but I did have to cancel some things so I could be closer to home, closer to Vanderbilt [University Medical Center], where I’m kind of having a few treatments here and there, but I wanted you to know that I’m not dying.”
Parton is 79 years old.
She announced on September 28 that she had to postpone her residency — which was scheduled to run from December 4 to December 13 at the Colosseum Theater at Caesars Palace — until September 2026 due to “health challenges.”
“My doctors tell me that I must have a few procedures,” the icon explained in her Instagram post. “As I joked with them, it must be time for my 100,000-mile check-up, although it’s not the usual trip to see my plastic surgeon!”
“In all seriousness, given this, I am not going to be able to rehearse and put together the show that I want you to see, and the show that you deserve to see. You pay good money to see me perform, and I want to be at my best for you.”
Fair and reasonable and, yes, a tad bit concerning.
But Parton’s sister made things even more concerning when she asked for the aforementioned prayers… prior to clarifying that she didn’t mean to cause panic.
Concluded Parton this time around, after assuring fans she had no plans to retire:
“There’s just a lot of rumors flying around, but I figured if you heard it from me, you’d know that I was okay.
“So anyhow, that’s what I wanted to say and I’m not ready to die yet. I don’t think God is through with me and I ain’t done working. So I love you for caring, and keep praying for me.”
