Billy Ray Cyrus has broken his silence with an emotional tribute to Dolly Parton following her death at age 80.
The “Achy Breaky Heart” singer, 63, shared his memories of the country legend on Tuesday, August 25, the day her passing was announced. Parton, who was the honorary godmother to his daughter Miley Cyrus, had been a mentor and close friend to Billy Ray for more than three decades.
“I have so many moments and memories with Dolly, it’s hard to know where to start,” Cyrus shared. “Like every little boy, I grew up loving Dolly Parton. She was a part of our lives, on our TVs, right in our living rooms.”
Their friendship deepened during the peak of Cyrus’s early 1990s breakthrough. When the pair teamed up for the 1993 duet “Romeo,” tabloid speculation exploded into false rumors of a romantic affair between them.
Cyrus recalled being deeply embarrassed by the gossip and seeking out Parton to make amends.
“In 1992, I’ll never forget walking into her dressing room to apologize for all the tabloid stories which claimed I was having an affair with her,” he recalled. “In true Dolly fashion, she just looked at me, winked and said, ‘Honey, this trash sells records!'”
Beyond their shared laughter over the industry machinery, Cyrus revealed that Parton had reached out to him with a final personal message before her death.
“Dolly recently sent me a beautiful message, telling me she loved me with her whole heart,” he wrote. “I will always love her in the same way… with my whole heart… and I always will.”
Cyrus’s tribute joined a massive wave of grief and celebration that crashed across the music and entertainment world following news of Parton’s passing. Her six-decade career had produced timeless classics including “Jolene,” “9 to 5,” and “I Will Always Love You,” while her Imagination Library philanthropy touched millions of children worldwide.
In the viral moment that has come to define her public persona, Parton’s effortless deflection of the 1990s affair rumors with a single witty line demonstrated the self-aware humor that made her beloved across generations. The tabloid speculation had threatened to overshadow the musical collaboration between two of country’s biggest stars, but her instant reframing turned potential scandal into a punchline about the entertainment business itself.
Parton’s death was announced by her nephew in a video statement that plunged fans and fellow artists into mourning. Tributes poured in from world leaders and peers across the industry, honoring a trailblazing storyteller whose warmth, generosity, and razor-sharp wit left an indelible mark on global pop culture.
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