Dolly Parton News

Dolly will be kicking off ABC’s new season of Dancing With The Stars on September 26th, performing her new single “Better Get To Livin’” and her classic “9 To 5″ before an estimated twenty million viewers. ABC will soon begin running promos for the new season featuring Dolly and her new single. The episode airs Wednesday, September 26th at 8/7c on ABC.

Dolly made a surprise appearance at Go Country 105.1 FM in Los Angeles this morning to promote her new single – “Better Get To Livin’” – giving the song its first radio play which left the DJ with goosebumps. Dolly restated her plans to tour next year in Europe, Australia and North America and said they are hoping to release Backwoods Barbie around Valentine’s Day. When asked about her 9 To 5 Broadway production, she revealed it will go into workshop at the Schubert Theatre in fall 2008 and debut in New York in spring 2009. Fans can listen to the entire interview via the Go Country 105.1 website.

Dolly’s amazing brand new single – “Better Get To Livin’” – has just been released today exclusively on iTunes! “My tunes on iTunes, come give me a play. I’ll cure all your ills with an Apple a day! Digital Dolly…yep, that’s me. I’m excited and proud to be part of the iTunes team,” Dolly stated in a press release.

An upbeat inspirational tune, the song is quintessential Dolly like you’ve never heard before. “Kent is the one who said that I should write a song about my attitude as so many people are always asking what my secret to success and happiness is…I think life has always been a pressure cooker, and people react to whatever pressures they’re under at the time according to their tolerance level and their mental attitude. Certainly with so much attention today on being skinny and beautiful, rich and famous, equal pay for equal work, getting ahead, raising kids, holding down a job, getting older, etc., I think this song says some things to let people know they’re not the only ones in that fix. And this song offers some advice for a way out.”

“The song ‘Backwoods Barbie’ pretty much says it all,” she continues. “I grew up poor and ragged, always dreamed of being beautiful like Barbie and the models in the Fredericks catalog. It’s true that the way I look is just a country girl’s idea of glamour, but it comes from an honest place. Backwoods Barbie just seemed like such a perfect title for a country album for me.”

The newly created Dolly Records will focus solely on releasing only Dolly’s music and will release the new album Backwoods Barbie in February next year. On having her own label, Dolly says, “I put it on my own label because many of the majors really didn’t want me because of my age, thinking I was over. But I feel different about that. I figured the major labels are pretty much a thing of the past anyway, kind of like they thought I was! The way music is being played today, why not make all the money, if there’s any money to be made. I’d rather have all of something than some of nothing. So I hired Danny Nozell to help manage me and all the things concerning me with all the new ideas. And with his knowledge of the new age and the team that he’s put together, I just didn’t see how I could miss. I might, of course; but he has assembled a great team and has a great marketing plan. And I’m having a great old time in this new day and age, so why not give it a whirl? I’ll never stop. I’ll never end until they lay me down, and then I’ll go kicking and screaming and trying to sing and write a song!”

The track listing for Backwoods Barbie is as follows:

1. “Better Get To Livin’”
2. “Made of Stone”
3. “Drives Me Crazy”
4. “Backwoods Barbie”
5. “Jesus & Gravity”
6. “Only Dreamin’”
7. “Tracks Of My Tears”
8. “The Lonesomes”
9. “Cologne”
10. “Shinola”
11. “I Will Forever Hate Roses”
12. “Somebody’s Everything”

Fans can download the new single right now through our iTunes link. Please note that you must have iTunes installed on your computer in order to access the link and download the new single. You can download the program for free from Apple’s website. And while you’re at it, I highly recommend an iPod if you don’t already have one. You’re gonna want to have this one for the road!

Famed celebrity blogger Perez Hilton got the chance of a lifetime to meet with Dolly last night at a very exclusive listening party in L.A. for her upcoming album Backwoods Barbie due out in February. Perez gushes about the experience of meeting Dolly on his blog, saying “Miz Parton is a legend, and she’s everything you could hope for. Talented and kind. Sweet and saucy. Pretty damn near perfect, like Mary Freakin’ Poppins.” Dolly greeted everyone in attendance one-on-one and teased with Perez, trying on his sunglasses much to the delight of Perez. Dolly even treated the select few invitees – who included David LaChapelle and Danilo (hairdresser for Gwen Stefani and Dita Von Teese) – to a new song called “Just A Wee Bit Gay”. On the new album, Perez said “You have your ballads. Your gospel. Your uptempo. There’s a little bit of everything for everyone. The two standout tracks were Backwoods Barbie, a song that Dolly’s writing for the new 9 to 5 Broadway musical, and You Drive Me Crazy, a cover of the Fine Young Cannibals song.” Check out the full report on Perez Hilton’s website.

Although the site does not officially launch for several more weeks, fans can check out a temporary splash page of Dolly photos and quotes over at her brand new official website. Dolly’s management does not expect the site to be launched until mid-to-late September, around the same time her new single “Better Get To Livin’” is set to debut, but fans are encouraged to sign up for their official mailing list in the meantime. And if you haven’t already joined the Dolly Parton On-Line Mailing List (our own mailing list), do that as well to make sure you don’t miss anything.

There has also been an update to Dolly’s fan mail address. All fan mail from now on should only be directed to:  Dolly Parton, P.O. Box 150307, Nashville, TN 37215. The old Brentwood address will no longer be accepting fan mail. Please note that this is the only way to contact Dolly and that we do not accept any fan mail.

After much anticipation, some details have just been released about Dolly’s next album and tour. A recent Billboard article states her new album will be released next February followed by a world tour in March that will hit the U.S., Canada, Europe and Australia. The album will be released on the newly-created Dolly Records, Parton’s very own label that will exclusively market her next album. The album’s first single – “Better Get To Livin’” – is set to hit radio on September 24th and is described as “amazing” by Parton’s manager, Danny Nozell, who will be heading up the label and a very extensive marketing campaign for the album over the next year. The new album and single will be promoted very differently from anything else Dolly has released in recent history with an aggressive marketing campaign that will include her very first official website along with a high-profile television performance of the new single that will be announced in the coming weeks. Dolly’s next album will be like nothing the fans have heard in years and many more details will be announced in the coming month so stay tuned!