BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WIAT) — She will always love him.
Country music superstar Dolly Parton has given her blessing to a new version of “Jolene” by Lil Nas X.
“I was so excited when someone told me that Lil Nas X had done my song,” she said. “I had to find it and listen to it immediately… and it’s really good. Of course, I love him anyway. I was surprised and I’m honored and flattered. I hope he does good for both of us.”
Lil Nas X rose to national fame with the song “Old Town Road,” which was released in 2019. The song appeared simultaneously on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs before the organization removed it, saying that while the song “incorporates references to country and cowboy imagery, it does not embrace enough elements of today’s country music to chart in its current version.”
Lil Nas X said he was “extremely disappointed” by the decision. Music critic Robert Christgau called the move “racist pure and simple.”
Parton’s “Jolene” was released in 1973 and has become a country classic as well as one of her most covered songs.
Lil Nas X’s debut album, Montero, was released earlier this month and has already reached the number two spot on the Billboard 200 chart.