Joy Behar says Dolly Parton's 'Jolene' is 'anti-feminist,' approves Beyoncé's version

"If it's so easy to take your man, then take him."

Joy Behar, who once boasted about calling an Italian woman a bitch on a European vacation, has labeled music legend Dolly Parton's hit "Jolene" as anti-feminist following the release of Beyoncé's 2024 reinterpretation of the 1973 classic.

"I like the subject of Beyoncé taking over the lyrics," the 81-year-old told her View producer Brian Teta on Wednesday's episode of the Behind the Table podcast. "Because the original thing with Dolly Parton is so, like, anti-feminist, worrying about some good-looking woman taking your man. If it's so easy to take your man, then take him."

She went on the praise Beyoncé's Cowboy Carter iteration of "Jolene," which shifts the narrative of Parton's version. Instead of pleading with a potential mistress not to take her man, Beyoncé's take on the tune lands more as a warning than an emotional plea. "You don't want this smoke, so shoot your shot with someone else. You heard me," Beyoncé sings on the track.

"Beyoncé says, if you take my man, you're going to be in a lot of trouble. I say, go ahead, take my man. Take him," Behar observed.

Parton herself also approved Beyoncé's take on "Jolene," as she appears on the song's introduction. "You know, that hussy with the good hair you sang about reminded me of someone I knew back when," Parton says on Cowboy Carter's "Dolly P" interlude. "Except she has flaming locks of auburn hair. Bless her heart. Just a hair of a different color, but it hurts just the same."

Later in the podcast, Behar claimed to be the "the person on this show that made Dolly Parton admit she was a feminist," and recalled an encounter in which she said Parton initially brushed off the thought of labeling herself a feminist.

"I said, 'Well, do you believe that women should get the same amount of money as men?' She said, 'Yes.' I said, 'Then, you're a feminist.' She said, 'I guess I am,'" Behar continued, finishing her thought by calling Parton "the best" in the business.

A local news report from a 2019 View interview with Parton outlines a brief interaction between the two, in which Behar questioned the singer-songwriter's stance on feminism.

"Does being feminine make me a feminist? Does being common make me a communist?" Parton said, per Knox News, later adding: "I don't like labels, but I'm a woman and I'm very supportive of women. I love men, don't get me wrong — I've always had them in my home — but I think we all should be able to express ourselves."

Entertainment Weekly has reached out to Parton for a response to Behar's assessment of the song.

Listen to Behar discuss "Jolene" by Parton and Beyoncé above.

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