A two-day festival honoring Dolly Parton will take place across consecutive weekends in Nashville and London in 2027, her estate announced, following the icon’s death from cancer last week at age 80.
Dollyfest was originally envisioned for January 2026 to mark her 80th birthday, with Parton planned as both host and performer. The event has now been repurposed to celebrate her legacy, according to a press statement released Monday morning.
“We had the venue booked and we had the announcement ready to go. And then, in August 2025, Dolly had to take a step back after her initial health challenges,” organizer Danny Nozell, founder and CEO of CTK Enterprises, said in a statement.
“A lot of people always say, WWDD (What Would Dolly Do?), and, well, at this moment, Dollyfest is WDWD (What Dolly Would Do!)”
Regarding memorial arrangements, Nozell explained: “We are not discouraging people from celebrating Dolly in the ways they choose. However, as far as a traditional memorial goes, that is not something Dolly wanted.”
Nozell added, “So, instead, it feels more appropriate for us to take a beat, let all the tributes that immediately make sense occur naturally, and then, see through this festival-style concept that was truly dreamed up by Dolly.”
In line with Parton’s personal wishes, there will be no public ceremony.
The Associated Press confirmed that a private service took place on Friday, attended exclusively by her immediate family.
On Saturday, Parton’s great-niece, Lainey Parton, paid tribute on Instagram, writing in a caption: “This is a really hard post for me to make. I wanted to wait until after my granny was laid to rest yesterday before I tried to put any of this into words.”
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She continued, “From the time I was little, my granny always had a way of making me feel like I was enough. She never made my dreams feel too big or made me feel like I couldn’t do something. She believed in me before I even knew how to believe in myself.”