{"id":830547,"date":"2026-08-30T05:56:10","date_gmt":"2026-08-30T05:56:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/830547\/"},"modified":"2026-08-30T05:56:10","modified_gmt":"2026-08-30T05:56:10","slug":"tennessee-governor-says-he-backs-airport-name-change-to-honor-dolly-parton-dolly-parton","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/830547\/","title":{"rendered":"Tennessee governor says he backs airport name change to honor Dolly Parton | Dolly Parton"},"content":{"rendered":"

Bill Lee, the Tennessee governor, on Friday said he favored a proposal to rename Nashville\u2019s international airport after legendary country singer Dolly Parton<\/a>, who died three days earlier at age 80.<\/p>\n

In a statement<\/a>, Lee said he and the managers of the airport in Tennessee\u2019s capital city \u2013 where Parton resided \u2013 wanted to create \u201ca lasting tribute to her indelible legacy and the generations of people she inspired\u201d. He said he had spoken previously to the 11-time Grammy winner and her team, who were \u201ctouched by the idea\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cDolly Parton\u2019s extraordinary life is forever woven into the fabric of our state,\u201d Lee said, noting that Nashville airport is where Tennessee welcomes the world.<\/p>\n

He added: \u201cIt is fitting that Nashville<\/a> International Airport would bear the name of our state\u2019s favorite daughter and greet travelers with the enduring legacy of Dolly\u2019s music, generosity, faith, and kindness.\u201d<\/p>\n

The proposal was scheduled to be addressed at a meeting of the Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority (MNAA) on 17 September. A statement from Doug Kreulen, MNAA president, said the Nashville airport shared Parton\u2019s understanding that \u201cdignity, kindness and opportunity should never be defined by where you come from or your socioeconomic status\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhether you are boarding a private aircraft or taking your first flight, you deserve to be welcomed, respected and served with the same level of care,\u201d he remarked.<\/p>\n

Parton<\/a> had requested a private funeral for immediate family, and there is not going to be any public memorial. She will be buried beside her husband, Carl Dean, at Nashville\u2019s Woodlawn memorial park and mausoleum.<\/p>\n

The singer told Entertainment Weekly<\/a> in 2014 that she expected Whitney Houston\u2019s rendition of I Will Always Love You to be part of her service. Parton also said she wanted an old gospel hymn, If We Never Meet Again, which was her father\u2019s favorite.<\/p>\n

In a video statement announcing her death on Tuesday, Parton\u2019s nephew Bryan Seaver, her longtime head of security, remarked: \u201cDolly called me and said she wants to rest in a beautiful bed of plush cotton because, after a life wearing heavy rhinestones, she finally deserves to be comfortable and have some rest.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lee discussed the proposal to rename Nashville\u2019s airport after a plane tugging a banner urging the name change buzzed over the Tennessee<\/a> state capitol on Friday. A petition was also launched, and it has since gained more than 150,000 signatures.<\/p>\n

\u201cEverybody is looking for a way to honor Dolly and her legacy,\u201d petition organizer Dan Dion told the Tennessean<\/a>. \u201cOur airport is so important, and there\u2019s symbolism in flying into Parton Airport. With Dolly\u2019s message of love, acceptance, music, kindness, humor and all these things, people feel that she is representative of what Tennessee truly is.\u201d<\/p>\n

If it comes to be, renaming Nashville airport will be at least the second airport in a matter of months to make a switch. Palm Beach airport was recently renamed for Donald Trump, with mixed reactions<\/a> from travelers and locals about naming the facility after the president.<\/p>\n

Freddie O\u2019Connell, the Nashville mayor, hinted that the proposed name change is only the start of metropolitan tributes in the city. He said the 9 to 5 and Jolene singer had been in the process of developing a hotel and museum called SongTeller \u201cthat she called her love letter to Nashville\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cNow it\u2019s our turn to share a love letter to Dolly \u2013 by renaming Nashville International Airport to Dolly Parton International Airport in Nashville,\u201d O\u2019Connell told the Tennessean.<\/p>\n

He also said the city was \u201cworking closely\u201d with Parton\u2019s team and family \u201con appropriate public recognition\u201d.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Bill Lee, the Tennessee governor, on Friday said he favored a proposal to rename Nashville\u2019s international airport after…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":830548,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[88],"class_list":["post-830547","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-entertainment","tag-entertainment"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/830547","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=830547"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/830547\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/830548"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=830547"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=830547"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=830547"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}