Getting the rest she needs.
Over the last year or so now, Dolly Parton has been dealing with some relatively serious health problems. At the end of 2025, she had to cancel plans for a Las Vegas residency due to those health issues, which were reported to be complications from kidney stones. It became an even bigger story when her sister asking for “prayers,” leading many to think that her condition was more serious than Dolly was letting on.
Dolly has said before she has issues with kidney stones, and her procedure was likely related to that, but in addition, she lost her husband of nearly 60 years at the beginning of 2025, so surely that has been weighing on her. And the woman deserves a break… I don’t think she has stopped working since she first set foot in Nashville at 18 years old.
She did make an appearance at her new travel stop opening in June, but will also be absent from two forthcoming shows, the ACM Honors where she’s receiving the ACM Poet’s Award as well as the 2026 Americana Honors & Awards, where she’s receiving the Lifetime Achievement Award.
And yesterday it was announced that Dolly will miss the unveiling event for Dollywood’s newest ride, NightFlight Expedition, which she was previously scheduled to attend, according to WATE. She still took part in the grand opening festivities via a video message, which she will also do for the aforementioned two award shows.
In the video message, she told fans once again that she’s been given doctors orders to rest because of the undisclosed health issues, noting that she gets “dizzy” and “dehydrated,” and needs to continue to take it easy. Dolly also explained that she’s continuing to work on her other projects, like her SongTeller hotel in Nashville, which contains the Life of May Colors museum, as well as her forthcoming Broadway Musical in New York City:
“I’m still in Nashville, and I’m sorry about that. I was supposed to be there in person like we planned… I’ve had my butterfly wings flapping since May 15th, when we were due to open the first time, ad again in June. But I know we have to make sure that this is the safest, since it is the biggest, and most expensive ride that we have ever added to Dollywood.
So we’re gonna open them today, that’s why I’m here, because my little butterfly wings are very kind of tall. Now, I’ve told you before, all my fans, that I’ve had a few little health issues, and sometimes, I get a little dizzy, and I get dehydrated, and I’m dehydrated. And so my Nashville doctor has kind of clipped my wings, saying you ain’t traveling this week… but I like to keep all of you in the loop, like I said I would, on everything.
So all is going well on the medical end of things, and I continue working away on all of our other projects, like the SongTeller hotel and my Life of May Colors museum here in Nashville, and the Broadway Musical in New York, and that is taking a lot of time.”
Dolly is obviously an incredibly hard worker, and while it sounds like she’s keeping herself busy, hopefully she’s taking a lot of time to heal because the world needs a happy and healthy Dolly Parton.
You can check out the video here:
@walruscarp Dolly Parton’s Speech for NightFlight Expedition with great news about her health. She was missed but thank you Miss Dolly for such a great park and new attraction! #dollyparton #dollywood #dollywoodthemepark #nightflightexpedition #pigeonforge ♬ original sound – Kirk • Theme Park Expert
