Dolly Parton News

Dolly will be making numerous media appearances this summer to promote Better Day, in stores on Tuesday.

Catch Dolly on GAC’s On The Street (pictured on the right with GAC’s Suzanne Alexander) on Tuesday, June 28th at 11:30 AM. The program re-airs the same day at 5 PM, 8 PM, and midnite. Then on Friday, July 1st, Dolly will appear on GAC’s Top 20 Countdown at 8 PM. The show re-airs at midnite, July 2nd at 10 AM, July 2nd at 5:30 PM, and July 3rd at 12 PM.

Next month, Dolly will appear on The Tonight Show With Jay Leno performing the album’s first single “Together You & I”. The show airs July 22nd at 11:35 PM on NBC.

In related album news, Entertainment Weekly gave Better Day an “A-”, placing it at the top of this week’s “Must List” and calling Dolly’s songs and performance on the album “brilliant”.

Dolly will be appearing at this year’s annual CMA Fest and fans can enter for a chance to win a meet and greet with Dolly this Saturday in Nashville! According to an e-mail sent to fans, “Winners will receive entry into the Exhibit Hall where Dolly will be doing meet and greets, gift bags, and we will take 2 photos and send you links to download them. Parking accommodations will NOT be covered. You must make your own parking plans. Additional information regarding meet and greet time, rules and regulations will be emailed to contest winners.

To enter to win, please email your first and last name to info@dollypartonmusic.net with the subject CMA FEST. Winners are able to bring ONE friend through the meet and greet line. Deadline to enter is 10AM CST on June 8, 2011. Winners will be randomly selected and notified via email this Wednesday, June 8, before 12 Noon CST.”

Dolly will be helping kick off this year’s CMA Fest at Marty Stuart’s Late Night Jam concert this Wednesday, June 8th along with Connie Smith, Mel Tillis, The Quebe Sisters and Doug Kershaw at the Ryman Auditorium. The show starts at 10 PM and is sold out but a limited number of tickets are still available from Ticket Liquidator.

Watch Dolly’s message to her fans about this year’s CMA Fest in the player below!

“Together You & I”, the first single from Dolly’s upcoming Better Day album, is now available for purchase from iTunes! The song is a modern remake of her 1974 duet with Porter Wagoner from their Porter ‘N’ Dolly album. Check out a review of the new single from Taste of Country which gave the song 3.5 out of 5 stars.

Dolly also recently started shooting the music video for the new single and is asking her fans to help contribute to the new video! Fans are asked to make their own videos about the song’s message of “unity in the community, country, and world” by making their own human chain of people holding hands from around the world. Fans have until June 15th to submit their video. More details are available on the contest page. In addition to being featured in Dolly’s new video, winners will receive a Better Day CD, fan laminate, Hatch Print, and autographed vinyl album. Watch Dolly’s message about the video in the player below and get those cameras rolling!

Dolly’s upcoming studio album, Better Day, will be released on June 28th from her Dolly Records label and is now available for pre-order from Amazon. Click on the newly released cover on the right to pre-order your copy!

Don’t forget to catch Dolly next Friday (May 27th) on the Ellen DeGeneres Show where she will perform the album’s first single, “Together You & I”.

Dolly made a surprise appearance at Sunday night’s Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) Media Awards at the Westin Bonaventure Hotel & Suites in downtown Los Angeles. Introduced by hosts Amy Poehler and Rashida Jones, Dolly greeted the audience with a play on the organization’s name, saying, “Well howdy! I’m just so glad to be here!” Dolly showed up to present Robert Greenblatt (NBC Entertainment Chairman and Dolly’s 9 To 5: The Musical co-producer) with the Stephen F. Kolzak Award, an annual award bestowed upon “an openly lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender media professional who has made a significant difference in promoting equality for the LGBT community.”

In introducing Greenblatt, Dolly said, “He’s never been afraid to push the envelope or stand behind things that can make a difference in this world. And of course I know a little something about what it means to march to the beat of your own drum cause for many years, I’ve enjoyed such good will from all kinds of folks, gay and straight. I thank you for that too. Because I really do think that I stand for being proud of who you are and not worrying a lick about what other people think. Really, and I feel fortunate that I’ve never had to be anything other than myself and I know Bob has lived his life in exactly the very same way. But we both know that there are many gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people who are afraid to live this way in spite of the fact that the world seems to be moving in a more tolerant and accepting direction finally, thanks to God.”

Dolly went on to comment about her own work in GLBT-related films including writing the Oscar-nominated “Travelin’ Thru” for the Transamerica soundtrack. “I wanted to write it because I love the message of the movie that everybody has a right to dignity in their lives.” Dolly then mentioned her work doing 9 To 5 and sang the chorus of the title song, much to the delight and cheering of the audience, before wrapping her introduction and welcoming Robert Greenblatt onstage. In his acceptance speech, he began with accolades for Dolly, saying, “We’ve all loved you for so many years because of the goodness that comes through everything you do, from your charity work to your incredible talent as an artist…there isn’t a more genuine, generous, or good-hearted person in the world.”

While backstage at the GLAAD Media Awards, Dolly chatted with E! Online’s Marc Malkin about pop music sensation Lady Gaga and her upcoming movie Joyful Noise with Queen Latifah. When asked about Lady Gaga’s country version of her new single “Born This Way”, Dolly replied, “I think it’s great. It’s just wonderful. I love her…Maybe we should do something together—GooGoo and Gaga! You know those GooGoo candy bars in Nashville? I could be Lady GooGoo.” On the music of her Joyful Noise movie, Dolly said, “I wrote four of the numbers. There are a couple we got to do together. There’s a lot of great music in the movie.”

Watch Dolly’s full introduction and Robert Greenblatt’s acceptance speech in this video:

Read more coverage of the event from the LA Times Blog and GLAAD’s official blog.

Right after the GLAAD Media Awards, Dolly flew to London where she will be appearing on numerous U.K. television shows this week to promote her upcoming European tour this summer. Catch Dolly Tuesday evening on BBC’s The One Show, Wednesday morning on ITV’s Daybreak and This Morning, and Wednesday afternoon on BBC Radio 2′s Steve Wright in the Afternoon.