Dolly Parton has been a household name for decades, achieving fame for an illustrious career as a country music singer, actress and entrepreneur.
For Parton, another big part of her identity is tied to her faith. She’s been open about her beliefs for years.
“My faith impacts everything that I do because I do believe that, through God, all things are possible,” Parton told Fox News Digital. “And so I always ask God to bless everything that I do and the people that I work with and to bring all the right things and right people into my life and to take the wrong ones out.
“So, I try to just live through love as much as I can. And so I just think that my spirituality has been a guiding light in my life and my strength, really, in my creative energy. And my spiritual energy has really been a great force to keep me going all these years and still being productive.”
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Dolly Parton is a country music icon. (Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame)
To say Parton has been productive is an understatement. Now 77, she began her career in the mid ‘60s, moving to Nashville from her home in the Smoky Mountains as soon as she graduated high school. She’s been working relentlessly since then in the music industry and building her business empire.
Parton has also written a number of books, her latest a children’s book, “Billy the Kid Makes It Big.” The book, released April 25, is about a dog named Billy the Kid, based on Parton’s “god-dog,” who dreams of making country music but has to overcome bullies on his quest for stardom.
As she sat with Billy the Kid by her side, the country legend told Fox News Digital about the book and its themes of bullying.
Parton says she wrote the book for kids because “I want them to feel empowered. I want them to think that they know that they can do anything that they set their mind to do and that if they stick with it, it’s likely to happen. So, it’s really about confidence and standing up to bullies and just keeping on with your dream until it comes true.”
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She also referenced her children’s song, “Makin’ Fun Ain’t Funny,” and said “most bullies really are needing attention themselves, and they just don’t know how to express that.”
Dolly Parton has some advice for anyone dealing with bullies. (David Crotty/Patrick McMullan)
“But I think that little kids and bigger kids are standing up to bullies,” she added. “You need to kind of hold your own as well. And don’t let them get the upper hand, and you don’t have to play into what they’re doing. It’s the worst thing you can do for bullies is just walk away as if they don’t exist. You know, like you didn’t hear it, and you don’t care. Like, that’s not who I am. I know who I am. You don’t need to be telling me who you think I am.”
“My faith impacts everything that I do because I do believe that, through God, all things are possible.”
When asked what message she would share with her younger self, Parton said, “Well, I would just tell her to buckle up. You’re in for the ride of your life. I do still have my little self inside me. I never forget who I am, where I came from, how I felt, what I wanted as a child or what I dreamed and hoped for. So, I always try to stay in touch with that little girl.
“Whatever age I am, I remember all the different selves that were all these different ages,” she explained. “And here I am. I’m as much of a child today as I was when I was a child. And, as they say, maybe I’m in my second childhood, I don’t know. But I like to think more that I’m childlike instead of childish.
“But I just really try to keep a child’s take on things. I try to think more young, and I try to not think doomsday. Of course, I know I’m old enough to die, but I’m not ready to, and I don’t live my life thinking that. I figure I’ll go when it’s time. I hope it’s easy, but in the meantime, I’ll go to work until I go, however, that is.”
Dolly Parton doesn’t plan to stop working anytime soon. (Jason Kempin/Getty Images for Netflix)
Perhaps a part of what helps keep her in such a positive mindset is her long, successful marriage to husband Carl Dean. Dean has avoided the spotlight throughout his marriage to Parton. The two have been together since 1966.
“He said, ‘Now I want you to be successful. Do whatever you want to do, but leave me out of this. I ain’t doing any more of these things, so don’t ask me.’ So I never did.”
When asked if his decision to stay out of the spotlight has contributed to the longevity of their marriage, Parton told Fox News Digital, “Well, I think it does. And, one, the fact that he’s not in show business at all. So we’re not in competition on that. We don’t have to deal with it.
“He’s kind of a homebody. He loves working on the farm. He loves working on his tractors and his trucks and all that. He was in asphalt paving for years. And then he went in kind of doing some real estate, but he didn’t want to be in the spotlight.”
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Despite the fact he has no interest in fame, she said, “he’s very proud of and for me. So it’s all good. But I laugh. But, you know, he said, ‘That’s for you, not me.'”
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She also shared a story of an early success in her career.
“I took him to the first award show when I first won an award when we first married in ‘66, and he just started taking clothes off before we even got out of the building. Before we got to the car, he had that bow tie off from that tuxedo, that shirt jacket off. And he said, ’Now I want you to be successful. Do whatever you want to do, but leave me out of this. I ain’t doing any more of these things, so don’t ask me.’ So I never did.”
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“It’s been a great journey,” Parton said. “It’s not always easy. And I’ve definitely paid my dues, but I’m here and still kicking and still coming up with new dreams all the time.”