Dolly Parton has finally had her say after singer Elle King's birthday tribute to her went awry at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville. Country music fans and Dolly's family members may have been horrified as the tribute descended into a profane performance, but the 'Jolene' singer has responded magnanimously.
"Elle is a really great artist", Dolly insisted Extra. "She's a great girl, and she's been going through hard things lately."
The Grammy-winning songstress added that Elle, 34, had: "Just had a little too much to drink, so let’s just forgive that and forget it and move on, 'cause she felt worse than anyone ever could."
Dolly's forgiving nature comes after Elle took part in a birthday tribute show to celebrate the singer-songwriter's 78th birthday last month. The 34-year-old joined Ashley Monroe, Tigirlily Gold, Dailey & Vincent and Terri Clark in the show, and during a performance of 'Marry Me', it became apparent she didn't remember the lyrics.
Elle, best known for her song 'Exes and Oh's', admitted she was "hammered" and didn't know how Dolly could sing the song so fast.
"I don't know the lyrics, don't tell Dolly 'cause it's her birthday", she said onstage. She later told audience members that they weren't getting refunded for the experience: "Y'all bought tickets for this [expletive]. You ain't gettin' your money back."
Dolly's sister Stella was left fuming by the performance, which she saw as disrespectful. Taking to Twitter, she wrote: "Since we’re comparing apples to oranges on here. I’m still stewing and thinking bout how any lil spoiled brat with an opportunity to sing on the Opry to pay tribute to a legendary songwriter like Dolly Parton would just piss on the star circle on the stage. Taylor Swift wouldn’t."
Since the controversial performance, Elle rescheduled a concert at Billy Bob's Texas two days before it was due to take place on January 26. The event has been pushed back to September 2024.
The venue explained: "The Elle King event, originally for Fri. 1/26/24 has been rescheduled to Sat. 9/21/24 @ 10 PM. Original event tickets will be accepted for the new date. Refunds are available at the point of purchase. Thank you for your understanding!"
The 'Exes and Oh's' singer has spoken openly about her relationship with alcohol and performing.
She told the San Diego Tribune: "It's easier for me to say: 'Yeah, I want to drink and party and (then) go on stage.'"
She added: "I get nervous before I go on stage, so I have a couple of drinks first. Drinking makes me less nervous about hitting the notes when I sing. If I don't make them, it won't sting as much."