Dolly Parton was a brilliant songwriter and musician. A trailblazer. A rule breaker. And the \u201cBook Lady\u201d who literally gave away hundreds of millions of books to the children of the world.<\/p>\n
In her trademark way with a quip and a giggle, she delighted generations with her wit and wisdom and her way of making us all feel connected.<\/p>\n
Even the \u201cCoat of Many Colors\u201d singer-songwriter\u2019s on-stage patter and backstage behavior in concert in the Miami area over the years seemed tailor-made for South Florida\u2019s audiences.<\/p>\n
She resonated.<\/p>\n
![\"Dolly](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/IMG_2b688d83-2256-472a-8_8_1_IKQL85FK_L906408298.JPG\" "\\"IMG_2b688d83-2256-472a-8_8_1_IKQL85FK_L906408298.JPG\\"")
Dolly Parton speaks to the crowd during the grand opening of Dolly’s Tennessean Travel Stop in Cornersville on June 24, 2026. Nicole Hester The Tennessean\/USA Today Network, Reuters <\/p>\n
Take this Miami Herald concert review from her local performance in November 2005:<\/p>\n
The times are certainly a\u2019changin,\u2019 as Dolly Parton delighted in telling her nearly sold-out crowd of about 3,000 at Boca Raton\u2019s Mizner Park Amphitheater Sunday night. Her Vintage Tour features her greatest hits as well as classic \u201860s and \u201870s folk-pop covers featured on her current CD, \u201cThose Were the Days,\u201d from which she drew heavily during her 90-minute performance.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe went from dropping acid to acid reflux. The Rolling Stones to kidney stones. It used to be drugs, sex and rock \u2018n\u2019 roll. Now there\u2019s no such thing as sex without drugs. And free love? Have you seen the price of Viagra?\u201d she joshed.<\/p>\n
Changing times have even taken their toll on Parton\u2019s career.<\/p>\n
\u201cCountry radio was like a great lover. Then they dumped my ass for younger women,\u201d she teased after singing her classic ode to a man-stealing, red-headed vixen named Jolene. But Parton\u2019s chipper demeanor \u2014 she punctuates every wisecrack with a girlish giggle \u2014 makes even potentially blue commentary family-friendly.<\/p>\n
Backstage at that concert, assembled guests were herded into a room with a stark set of rules issued by, presumably, one of her handlers. \u201cNo pictures. Do not approach Dolly. She\u2019ll come to you.\u201d<\/p>\n
Moments later, grinning Dolly Parton swanned into the room and cheerfully told her lucky fans, \u201cYou heard a whole bunch of rules. I\u2019m here to tell you, you can break \u2018em all!\u201d<\/p>\n
She met all of her backstage guests personally and posed for selfies taken on archaic flip cameras, the images likely lost to time \u2014 there was no social media or iPhone Cloud 21 years ago \u2014 but etched in memory.<\/p>\n
Inside a University of Miami social media class on the day Dolly died on Tuesday, students had their first assignment social posts beamed onto the room\u2019s screen for class evaluation. One student had set her back to school routine Instagram and TikTok clip to the music of Parton\u2019s 2022 deep cut, \u201cBig Dreams and Faded Jeans.\u201d<\/p>\n
That\u2019s how much Parton\u2019s music reached across the generations \u2014from boomers who grew up on \u201cJolene,\u201d \u201c9 to 5\u201d and \u201cI Will Always Love You,\u201d to Gen Z who somehow discovered the newer \u201cBig Dreams and Faded Jeans.\u201d<\/p>\n
This summer, one prominent Miami family, the Kreegers, visited the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum in Nashville to honor America\u2019s 250th birthday.<\/p>\n
David Kreeger, son of the late Miami classical music impresario Julian Kreeger<\/a>, who died in 2024, and Judith Kreeger, senior circuit judge for the Eleventh Judicial Circuit of Florida, who died on Tuesday, the same day as Parton, was inspired to honor his mother and Parton with a post to Facebook later that day.<\/p>\n \u201cIn many ways, Dolly Parton\u2019s story reminded me of Mom\u2019s,\u201d Kreeger wrote. \u201cTwo women of a generation where women were told no far more often than yes. And two women who refused to accept that answer.<\/p>\n \u201cDolly Parton\u2019s impact was felt around the world through her music, championing of women\u2019s rights, philanthropy, and willingness to take risks as she evolved throughout her career. Mom\u2019s impact came in different arenas \u2014 internationally recognized family court judge, mentor and advocate for professional women, advocate for underserved children, and community leader in South Florida.<\/p>\n \u201cLittle did I know a few weeks ago that both would pass away on the same day, today, reminding me once again of the parallels in their lives and the lives of so many trailblazing women of their generation. We owe an enormous debt of gratitude to this generation for their willingness to forge ahead not just for their own sake, but for the sake of the women they knew would follow,\u201d Kreeger wrote.<\/p>\n \u201cThank you, Dolly. Thank you, Mom. And thank you to all of the others who refused to take no for an answer.\u201d<\/p>\n On the day Parton died the National Hurricane Center was tracking a system in the Atlantic, waiting to see if the tropical wave could strengthen into the next named storm<\/a> of the season \u2014 Dolly.<\/p>\n This story was originally published August 26, 2026 at 10:35 AM.<\/p>\n Howard Cohen<\/a><\/p>\n Miami Herald<\/p>\n Miami Herald consumer trends reporter Howard Cohen, a 2017 Media Excellence Awards winner, has covered pop music, theater, health and fitness, obituaries, municipal government, breaking news and general assignment. He started his career in the Features department at the Miami Herald in 1991. Cohen is an adjunct professor at the University of Miami School of Communication.
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