Dolly Parton’s Final Request to Her Family Revealed
The music icon’s family shared her last words before she died peacefully at 80.
Music legend Dolly Parton’s final request to her family has been revealed in a statement from her nephew and head of security, Bryan Seaver.
Seaver announced Parton’s passing in a video he said the star and philanthropist requested “years ago.” He said the request came before he “fully absorbed it as a future reality.”
“I have imagined the heaviness of this moment but haven’t truly felt it until now,” said Seaver, dressed in a suit and speaking against a plain black background. The video was posted on her official Instagram account, which has 9.6 million followers.
“It is an honor that is mixed with absolute pride and great sadness. But sadness lies with us, not with Dolly,” he said. “Dolly has lived in the light, and is in the arms of Jesus, surely met by Carl, her parents, and countless others who have watched her and longed for her to meet them in the heavens.”
Dolly Parton performing at the Glastonbury Festival in Somerset, England, in June 2014.
Cathal McNaughton/Reuters
He continued to speak of the country star’s stunning legacy and what she leaves behind, saying, “Dolly also opened doors for generations of singers, songwriters, musicians and dreamers from every walk of life, and across every continent. By her example, we believed that anything was possible. She never saw a door she couldn’t open, and the doors she opened made and changed history.”
Seaver added that Parton asked for one other request: “Dolly 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.”
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Her nephew said that she “will always love” her fans.
The country music singer died Tuesday at age 80.
Dolly Parton at Dollywood circa 1993.
Ron Davis/Getty Images
Parton will be honored by a small, private service for “immediate family,” her website states, “at Dolly’s request.”
Friends, politicians, celebrities, and fans worldwide are now mourning the “Jolene” singer and 9 to 5 star, whose groundbreaking career was accompanied by a staunch commitment to philanthropy.
“I really do ask God every single day to let me do something, say something, be something that matters to somebody else. To make somebody feel good. To let people see a spark of love,” Parton told Vogue in 2016.
Signs, candles and flowers near Dolly Parton's star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame after it was announced that the country music icon died.
Mario Anzuoni/REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni
Her representative confirmed that Parton died following a “brief battle with cancer,” but provided no further details on what kind of cancer she faced. The icon died at the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center in Nashville, Tennessee, Parton’s birthplace and lifelong residence, which is experiencing “profound grief” in the wake of her death.
She died peacefully surrounded by loved ones, her family said.
Parton’s family asked that donations be made to Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library in her honor. Launched by Parton in 1995, the free book program has donated over 300 million books to children worldwide.
Singer Dolly Parton reads her book, "The Coat of Many Colors" to schoolchildren at The Library of Congress on February 27, 2018 in Washington, DC.
Shannon Finney/Getty Images
The 11-time Grammy winner faced increasing health issues over the past year, receiving treatment for issues with kidney stones and having to cancel several public appearances.
Last Friday, amid growing concern from fans, Parton said her health issues surfaced since the death of her husband, Carl Dean, in March 2025. “I am dealing with some health issues that I just didn’t pay attention to when I was watching over Carl,” she said.
Dolly Parton and her husband, Carl Thomas Dean.
YouTube/Dolly Parton
But the icon kept her characteristic zest for both life and work. “As I’ve often said: I’ve dreamed myself into a corner, and I still have so many things I want to achieve, so I’m gonna keep on working as long as I can to see everything come to life.”
Parton’s family said in an initial statement that she had a “rhinestone life that shone bright enough for the world to see.”
“Dolly will forever stand as an inspiration,” the statement reads, “Not only through her timeless music and prolific songwriting, but also her wit, warmth, and kindness that made us all feel like family.”
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