Dolly Parton laid to rest in private Nashville funeral

The queen of country was interred next to her late husband in an intimate ceremony attended by close family

Dolly Parton was laid to rest in a private ceremony in Nashville on Friday, her family has confirmed.

The queen of country music, who died aged 80 on 25 August “after bravely facing a brief battle with cancer”, was interred at Woodlawn Memorial Park and Mausoleum alongside her husband of 60 years, Carl Thomas.

Parton’s great-niece Lainey Parton wrote on Instagram on Saturday: “I wanted to wait until after my granny was laid to rest yesterday before I tried to put any of this into words.

“From the time I was little, my granny always had a way of making me feel like I was enough. She never made my dreams feel too big or made me feel like I couldn’t do something. She believed in me before I even knew how to believe in myself.

“Because she couldn’t have kids of her own, she always made us feel like we were hers,” Lainey continued. “She loved us that way, and I’ll forever be grateful for that.”

Only immediate family attended the small ceremony, People reported. Parton had her name engraved on the large mausoleum plaque at the cemetery before she died, as well as an engraving of the cabin in Sevier county, Tennessee, where she grew up.

On Saturday, Parton’s niece Jada Star took to the stage at Nashville’s Grand Ole Opry as part of a tribute concert to the country legend. Star performed a song titled The Orchard that she had recorded with Parton for her 2024 album Smoky Mountain DNA: Family, Faith and Fables.

In an Instagram post ahead of the performance, Star said, “I am walking around in a fog of sadness, like all of you have.

“I do not take this honor lightly. I will stand on that stage tonight, the stage she loved so much, and share my song I wrote for her and for my whole family.”

On Monday, the estate of Parton announced DollyFest, a two-weekend event which will take place in Nashville and London next year. Before her death, Parton had been planning the festival for January 2026 but had to take a step back due to health issues.

“As far as a traditional memorial goes, that is not something Dolly wanted,” said Parton’s manager, Danny Nozell, in a press release. “So, instead, it feels more appropriate for us to take a beat, let all the tributes that immediately make sense occur naturally, and then, see through this festival-style concept that was truly dreamed up by Dolly.”

Last week, Parton’s team confirmed that the projects she was working on before her death would continue to be brought to life, including a line of coffee grounds, a home decor collection and a Broadway musical to launch in New York later this year.

“Dolly worked up until the day she died,” Nozell said. “As the leader of the team responsible for overseeing her legacy, we will ensure the many dreams she had yet to fulfill are brought to life.”

Active projects that Parton was working on at the time of her death also include Dolly Parton’s SongTeller Hotel and Dolly’s Life of Many Colors Museum, which are both scheduled to open next month in Nashville. Meanwhile, Dolly Dolls and a range of Dolly’s Dog Treats are scheduled to be released in the coming months.

The family has asked for donations in Parton’s memory to be dedicated to Imagination Library , the organization she founded to encourage literacy and the love of reading in children.