At 76, Dolly Parton Debuts New All-Leather Look for Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction
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Dolly Parton was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame over the weekend.
To accept the honor (and perform her first rock song), she dressed the part, wearing head-to-toe leather.
She had previously withdrawn from the nomination, but had a change of heart.
Just a few months ago, Dolly Parton withdrew her own Rock & Roll Hall of Fame nomination, stating that she hadn’t “earned that right” as a country star. But the “Jolene” singer ultimately had a change of heart, and over the weekend, she joined the likes of AC/DC and Bon Jovi at her formal induction, to which she wore head-to-toe leather, the uniform of classic rock.
The shiny, skin-tight bodysuit featured plenty of Parton’s trademark bling, including crystal buckles above bell bottoms and red bedazzled shoulders (with a bedazzled electric guitar to match). But the outfit was only the beginning of her rock persona’s debut.
A grand portion of the ceremony was dedicated solely to the star, which featured a duet with Judas Priest vocalist Rob Halford, along with rock renditions of her songs (including a group performance of “Jolene”) by Duran Duran’s Simon Le Bon, Pink, Brandi Carlisle, and more.
Parton then went on to tease her upcoming rock album (!!!) and performed a song from it that she wrote specifically for the night called “Rockin.”
“And you thought I couldn’t rock!” she exclaimed before performing, per Variety. “I figured if I’m gonna be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, I’m gonna have to earn it.” In her induction speech, she went into more detail about her thought process behind the upcoming record (which she said will have at least 25 songs).
“I’m sure a lot of you knew that back when they said they were gonna put me in the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, I didn’t really feel like I had done enough to deserve that. And I didn’t understand at the time that it’s about a little more than that,” she said. “But I’m just honored and so proud to be here tonight.”
She continued: “And I thought, well, if I’m gonna be in [it], I’m gonna have to do a rock album, because my husband of 56 years is a huge rock fan. And all through the house he has music louder than this going on at all times. He’s always said, ‘You should do a rock album.’ And I thought about it a few times, but timing is everything. And then when this all came up… I thought, well, since I am gonna be in the [hall], I’m gonna write a song for tonight, which I’m gonna sing in a minute, kind of telling my story about how I felt about it.”
The ceremony highlights will broadcast on HBO on November 19, per Variety. And as for the rock album, we’ll just have to wait patiently for Dolly’s next update.
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