Dolly Parton recorded an acceptance speech for a lifetime achievement honour before she died last month.
The 9 to 5 hitmaker, who died on 25 August at the age of 80, appeared in a pre-taped message at the 2026 Americana Honors & Awards in Nashville, Tennessee on Wednesday night.
In the video acceptance speech, the country music legend said, “Well, hey, it’s Dolly. I’m honoured to be receiving a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Americana Music Association.”
Dolly recalled growing up on Americana music and how the genre drew her back to Tennessee to make her 1998 album Hungry Again.
“That project really opened the door to a series of bluegrass and acoustic albums that changed the course of my career in so many ways,” she continued. “Now, new fans discovered these albums, new Americana music communities embraced them, and now looking back at it all, I see this era of my career as a musical renaissance of sorts.”
She added, “I want to thank everyone at the AMA for recognising me with this award. It’s a great honour truly, and just know that I will always love you.”
Officials at the Americana Music Association announced Dolly’s honour in early August, mere weeks before she passed away after a brief battle with cancer. According to her manager, the singer worked up until the day she died.
Dolly’s friend Emmylou Harris, who gave a speech reflecting on the Jolene hitmaker’s legacy, introduced the video by saying she recorded it “with the same warmth, joy, and sparkle she so generously shared with us throughout her life”.
Afterwards, Brandi Carlile and I’m with Her teamed up for a cover of Dolly’s song, Coat of Many Colors.
