Sabrina Carpenter and Paul McCartney have led new tributes to to the late Dolly Parton.
The music industry luminaries shared their fondest memories of the country legend after her death on 25 August at the age of 80.
Sabrina, 27, shared a black-and-white gallery of photos of herself with Dolly, accompanied by a heartfelt caption that described Dolly as “an angel”.
“oh dolly,” the Please, Please Please singer wrote, alongside a broken heart emoji. “the only thing i could say after we first met was ‘she really is an angel walking the earth’ and ‘we look like we could be sisters!'”
The singer, who featured Dolly in a duet of the late octogenarian’s country hit Jolene on the deluxe version of her album, Short n’ Sweet, went on to lament the loss of Dolly’s “singular magic”.
“i will cherish our laughter and conversations and i will keep your wisdom, your playful outlook on life, and perfect sense of humor in my pocket for the rainy days,” she wrote. “there will never be another you and how lucky are we all to have experienced your singular magic as well as your once in a lifetime voice, songs, and heart. your light will be something the world will search forever to find again. i will always love you.”
Meanwhile, Sir Paul McCartney said he would find it “hard to imagine living in a world without Dolly”.
“The magnificent star Dolly Parton has died and it is so sad. She was such a wonderful woman,” Paul, 84, wrote on Instagram in a caption accompanying a pair of monochrome photos of them together in their younger years.
“I first met her in Nashville at the Grand Ole Opry where she had been playing with the country star Porter Wagoner and was about to start her solo career. She was so bubbly and full of life it is difficult to take in the news that she has passed. Her songwriting, her singing and her philanthropy were unrivaled in the world of country music and it is hard to imagine living in a world without Dolly.”
Dolly died “after bravely facing a brief battle with cancer”, her family announced via a statement released hours after her passing.
“Our beloved Dolly Parton spent her life and career bringing joy, laughter, hope and integrity into everything she touched,” the statement read.
“Her unmatched generosity reached the lives of countless people whom she would never meet, yet she was always there to offer a helping hand.
“Whether it be the hundreds of millions of books donated through her invaluable Imagination Library or funding research that helped create a lifesaving vaccine used around the world, Dolly’s unconditional love for all people was the guiding force for her lasting impact.
“After bravely facing a brief battle with cancer, Dolly departed her Earthly life today at the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Centre surrounded by loved ones.”
