A festival will be held in Dolly Parton’s honor across consecutive weekends in Tennessee and England next year, the late country musiclegend’s estate announced on Monday.
Dubbed “Dollyfest,” the festival was initially scheduled to take place in Nashville on Parton’s 80th birthday this past January. Parton was set to serve as both the host and a performer at the event, which was also planned to include performances from several other musicians. In a statement on Monday, Danny Nozell, the founder and CEO of CTK Enterprises, said that the festival was “a dream of Dolly’s.” But as Parton was dealing with health issues in recent months, she “had to take a step back” from the event, Nozell said.
In the wake of her death last week, Parton’s estate revealed in a press release on Monday that the festival will now be held in 2027 to honor her legacy.
“What Dolly started, we will ensure is brought to life,” Nozell said. “A lot of people always say, WWDD (What Would Dolly Do?), and, well, at this moment, DOLLYFEST is WDWD (What Dolly Would Do!).”
Read More: Dolly Parton’s Life, in Pictures
The festival will take place in both Nashville and London, and “will be the party of a lifetime she wanted to share with the world,” according to the release. Parton’s estate has not yet shared details about the specific dates it will be held or the performers it will feature, but said that more information about the event would be shared at a later date.
“We are not discouraging people from celebrating Dolly in the ways they choose,” Nozell said. “However, as far as a traditional memorial goes, that is not something Dolly wanted. 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.”
“This is something that is authentic to her, something that feels right to me, and something that artists and fans around the world can participate in, while also giving everyone time to grieve, and giving everyone time to plan,” Nozell said.
Last week, Parton’s publicist told news outlets that the country music icon had died after a “brief battle with cancer.” Parton had been dealing with health issues over the past year, postponing and later canceling several shows. She revealed in October that she was having “a few treatments here and there” at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, and said in May that her immune and digestive systems “got all out of whack” over the past few years and that her doctors were “working real hard on rebuilding and strengthening those.”
Almost immediately after her family announced her death, tributes for Parton began flooding in—from politicians like President Donald Trump to musical artists like Beyoncé.
“You were the barometer. The North Star. Bold and brilliant. Talented and tenacious. You taught so many lessons on how to be uniquely oneself,” Beyoncé said in a statement. “Thank you for your profound impact on the world. You are an angel who has made this world a happier place because of your joyful art. You are truly one of one.”
A private funeral service was held for Parton’s immediate family on Friday, The Associated Press reported.
Parton’s great-niece, Lainey Parton, shared a post on Instagram the following day, in which she wrote a touching tribute to Parton and included photos of them together.
“This is a really hard post for me to make. I wanted to wait until after my granny was laid to rest yesterday before I tried to put any of this into words,” Lainey Parton said in the caption. “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.”
“It still doesn’t feel real that she’s gone. I’m going to miss her voice, her laugh, her hugs, and just knowing she was there,” she continued. “Thank you to everyone who has reached out, sent messages, flowers to my house, or done any of the little things to show me love. I’ve noticed every single one, and they’ve meant more than you know. I feel incredibly lucky that I got to call her my granny.”
There are no public services planned by Parton’s family and estate, but her family encouraged fans to share tributes online and donate to Parton’s Imagination Library, a program she launched in 1995 that mails books to children for free.
The post What We Know About ‘Dollyfest,’ the Festival Dolly Parton Planned to Host—and That’s Now Being Held in Her Honor appeared first on TIME.
