Reba McEntire Recalls the Day Dolly Parton Died and Her Response to Condolences: “Don’t Say You’re Sorry”

Reba McEntire is grateful for Dolly Parton. During an appearance on The Jennifer Hudson Show, McEntire reflected on the biggest things she learned from the late country legend.

“I loved the way Dolly carried herself with confidence and poise,” McEntire said. “She could cut a joke in a heartbeat. She would make sure that everybody felt comfortable in her presence when nobody ever was, because it’s, like, pandemonium.”

“When she came out to California and did the Reba TV show with me for a week, she treated everyone equally,” she added. “Everybody.”

Parton died in August after a brief battle with cancer. She was 80.

“The day she passed, we were working on Happy’s Place,” McEntire said of her NBC sitcom. “Everybody was like, ‘Reba, we’re so sorry.’ I said, ‘Don’t say you’re sorry. This gal’s going on. She knows where she’s going. It’s a huge celebration.’ But I felt her with me the whole day.”

Reba McEntire Discusses Her Dolly Parton Tribute

McEntire did her best to bring that energy to the Emmy Awards, where she performed Parton’s “Appalachian Memories” in memory of her late pal.

“It was getting to sing for your buddy. And it meant a lot to me,” she said. “When they said, ‘We would like for you to do it,’ I was honored. It was just my way of sending her off.”

For the tribute performance, Parton’s estate loaned McEntire the late singer’s earrings and ring to wear.

“It was an honor to have a little piece of her on stage with me,” McEntire told Vogue after her performance. “I picked a pair of rhinestone earrings and a butterfly ring. There’s nothing that says Dolly more than rhinestones and butterflies!”

As for the song she chose to sing, McEntire said that she selected “Appalachian Memories” as a nod to Parton’s love for her family and her hometown.

“It’s always been one of my favorite Dolly songs. She wrote it about her family and I think it’s just so beautiful and perfect to honor who she was and where she came from,” McEntire said. “She always carried her upbringing with her, and I admired that. There will never be another Dolly Parton.”

Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images

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