Dolly Parton appeared at the Americana Awards and Honors ceremony on Sept. 16 to accept her Lifetime Achievement Award, despite having died almost a month earlier.
Parton accepted her award in a pre-taped video message, Rolling Stone reported.
It is not known when she recorded the clip, but she died from a short battle with cancer on Aug. 25.
She was introduced by Emmylou Harris.
“It’s Dolly. I’m honored to be receiving a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Americana Music Association,” Parton said. “Roots music, or what is now called Americana music, is what I grew up playing back in the Smoky Mountains.”
Variety noted that when the video started, the Ryman Auditorium fell silent as the crowd gasped. The award had been planned to be presented in absentia.
She continued, “It’s that same music that drew me back to East Tennessee in 1997 to write and record my album, ‘Hungry Again.’ And that project really opened the door to a series of bluegrass and acoustic albums that changed the course of my career in so many ways.”
“Now, new fans discovered these albums, new Americana music communities embraced them, and now looking back at it all, I see this era of my career as a musical renaissance of sorts. I want to thank everyone at the AMA for recognizing me with this award,” Parton said.
“It’s a great honor truly, and just know that I will always love you,” Parton said.
After the speech, Brandi Carlile and I’m With Her performed “Coat of Many Colors.”
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