Dollyfest will be held in Dolly Parton's honor next year

A festival will be held in Dolly Parton's honor across consecutive weekends in Tennessee and England next year, the late country music legend's estate announced on Monday. The report presents that announcement as the clearest new public step. It means the event is now being framed as a tribute in her honor, rather than as the version of the festival she had originally planned to lead herself.

Dollyfest was initially scheduled to take place in Nashville on Parton's 80th birthday this past January. She was set to serve as both the host and a performer, and the event was also planned to include performances from several other musicians. Danny Nozell said the festival was a dream of Dolly's, but that health issues in recent months meant she had to take a step back.

In the wake of her death last week, Parton's estate revealed in a press release on Monday that the festival will now be held in 2027 to honor her legacy. That update shifts the event from an interrupted birthday-era plan to a later memorial celebration. The report therefore treats the timing change as part of a broader change in meaning after her death.

The festival will take place in both Nashville and London and will be the party of a lifetime she wanted to share with the world, according to the release. Parton's estate has not yet shared details about the specific dates it will be held or the performers it will feature, but said more information would be shared later. The event is therefore announced, but many practical details remain undisclosed.

Nozell said people were not being discouraged from celebrating Dolly in the ways they choose, but he also said a traditional memorial was not something Dolly wanted. Instead, he said it felt more appropriate to let immediate tributes occur naturally and then see through the festival-style concept that was truly dreamed up by Dolly. The report presents that view as the family's public explanation for the approach.

Last week, Parton's publicist told news outlets that she had died after a brief battle with cancer. The report says she had been dealing with health issues over the past year, postponing and later canceling several shows. It also says she revealed in October that she was having a few treatments here and there, and said in May that doctors were working to rebuild and strengthen her systems.