A Change.org petition to rename Nashville International Airport after Dolly Parton surged past 100,000 signatures Wednesday as celebrities and lawmakers rallied behind the cause following the country icon’s death.
The petition, titled “Rename Nashville International Airport to Dolly Parton International Airport,” had languished at roughly 53,000 signatures for more than a year since its creation in January 2025. It gained more than 50,000 new supporters in the single day after Parton, 80, died Tuesday following a brief cancer battle, with signatures arriving by the second according to the campaign’s organizers.
“On August 25, the world lost an angel,” an update posted to the petition read. “It’s difficult to imagine a world without our Dreamer-In-Chief. How are we going to be okay without her magic to keep us safe? How can we shine without her light?”
The outpouring prompted the campaign’s creators to declare their mission reinvigorated. “Since her passing, tens of thousands of additional supporters have visited and signed this petition,” the update added.
Parton was born east of Knoxville but built her career and spent much of her life in Nashville, making the airport renaming a tribute with deep geographic resonance for Tennessee residents. The petition’s original language emphasized those roots when it launched eighteen months ago, though it had attracted only modest interest until this week.
Sheryl Crow, 63, gave the movement a high-profile boost during an appearance on Katie Couric’s Instagram livestream Tuesday. “People are talking about trying to get the Nashville airport … changed to the Dolly Parton International Airport,” Crow said. “I’m like, ‘Yes! I think we should.'”
Tennessee state Rep. Todd Warner also pledged concrete legislative action, responding directly on the petition platform with a vow to introduce a bill. “I will definitely introduce legislation to rename the BNA airport Dolly Parton International Airport!” Warner wrote.
Warner’s support carries particular political weight given his previous attempt to rename the same facility. In January 2025, he proposed dubbing it “Trump International Airport,” but that bill failed in a 5-12 committee vote. After that defeat, Warner acknowledged the Trump measure “went down in flames” and endorsed the Parton petition instead, citing “numerous” constituent emails requesting the dedication. He said at the time that he would support a change if the opportunity arose.
The petition’s comment section filled with emotional tributes from ordinary fans alongside the celebrity endorsements. “Dolly Parton represents the heart of Tennessee and the heart of its music,” one signer wrote. “Naming Nashville International Airport in her honor would welcome visitors from around the world with a name that immediately says welcome! Know we love ya!”
Another supporter framed the renaming as proportional to Parton’s cultural contributions. “One of the sweetest and dearest singers, and not only that, a role model to so many. Undeniably an icon and after all that she has given us, the least we can do is name something in her honor,” the person wrote. “Just as she took us on adventures with her songs and supported everyone’s journeys, this Dolly airline will do the same.”
In the viral moment that transformed the year-old petition from a niche cause into a national conversation, Parton’s family announced Tuesday that the “Jolene” singer had died at 80 after a brief cancer battle. The news triggered an immediate surge of memorial activity across Tennessee and beyond, with the airport campaign becoming one of the most concrete and rapidly mobilized efforts to secure a permanent public tribute to her legacy.
Warner has not yet announced a timeline for introducing his promised legislation, and the Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority has not publicly commented on the renaming proposal.