‘I Ain’t Got Time to Get Old’ (Exclusive)

At 80, Dolly Parton Reflects on Seven Decades of Defying Expectations

Dolly Parton doesn’t have time to get old. That’s the message the country music legend delivered with characteristic bluntness as she approaches her 80th birthday, sitting down with PEOPLE magazine to discuss her new memoir, Star of the Show: My Life on Stage, and the trajectory of a career that has reshaped American entertainment across multiple generations.

“I feel like I’m just getting started,” Parton said in the interview. “I know that sounds stupid, but unless my health gives way, which right now I seem to be doing fine … I think there’s a lot to be said about age. If you allow yourself to get old, you will. I say, ‘I ain’t got time to get old!’ I ain’t got time to dwell on that.”

The sentiment captures something essential about Parton’s half-century-plus in the spotlight: relentless forward momentum, grounded in an almost defiant refusal to accept limitations—whether imposed by industry gatekeepers, gender norms, or the simple mathematics of mortality.

A Working Girl with Uncommon Ambition

Parton, 79, spoke candidly about the sacrifices her career demanded. Reflecting on the process of writing her book, she acknowledged the enormity of what she’d accomplished while simultaneously confronting what she’d surrendered along the way.

“I have just been going so fast my whole life,” she explained. “I really realized when I was putting this book together just how much I had sacrificed in my life. I never had children, so at least I didn’t have a guilty feeling. I’m thankful that I got to see my dreams come true.”

That single-minded devotion to craft began early. Born to a tobacco farmer father and a homemaker mother, Parton inherited her father Robert’s work ethic and her mother Avie’s creative spark. After high school, she moved to Nashville and became the duet partner of country star Porter Wagoner, a partnership that produced hits like “Jolene” and “Coat of Many Colors” before the two parted ways in 1974.

Even then, Parton recognized a hard truth: “I knew I had to keep going. I couldn’t be Porter’s girl singer forever because God had a bigger purpose for me, and I had bigger dreams of my own.”

Breaking Through the Barriers, Building an Empire

The 1980s proved transformative. Parton made her pop crossover as a solo artist, then conquered Hollywood with roles in films like 9 to 5, appearing alongside Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin. She hosted her own variety show, built Dollywood into a major regional attraction, and navigated an industry that often told her who she should be.

“You have to grow into things, and you have to grow out of things; that’s how I handled my career,” Parton reflected. “I needed to try things. A lot of people think because you’re a girl, you don’t always know what you’re doing. I don’t care about what other people are doing. I only care about what I need to be doing.”

Today, her achievements are quantifiable: an Emmy, 11 Grammy Awards, 25 No. 1 hits, more than 100 million albums sold worldwide, and an ever-expanding business empire spanning resorts, streaming projects, fragrances, frozen foods, and cookware.

“I’m not trying to outdo anybody except me,” she said. “I just want to be my best self at all times and try to improve every day. It wasn’t about just being rich; it was about being successful at what I love to do. Dreams nor wishes come true without a lot of hard work.”

The Quiet Work of Giving Back

For many, Parton’s most enduring legacy may not be recorded on vinyl or captured on film. In 1995, inspired by her own father’s inability to read or write, she founded Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, a charitable initiative that mails free books to children from birth through age five.

The numbers tell a story of extraordinary scale and persistence: as of November 2025, the Imagination Library had distributed over 300 million books to children across the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, and the Republic of Ireland.[2] The program now gifts more than 3.4 million books monthly through partnerships with nearly 2,800 local organizations.[2]

A child enrolled as a newborn has the potential to receive 60 books before turning five—a personal library built entirely on Parton’s conviction that literacy changes lives. Recent grants from the New York State Library allocated nearly $500,000 to expand the program statewide, demonstrating how her early vision continues to drive policy and funding decisions decades later.[7]

“For Dolly, every book is a gift of possibility,” the Imagination Library noted in celebrating the 300 million milestone. With that achievement, Parton has ensured that millions of children—particularly those in economically disadvantaged communities—have access to the foundational tools of literacy.

Personal Loss and Continued Purpose

The past year has tested Parton’s resilience. In March, Carl Dean, her ultra-private husband of 58 years, died at 82. While grieving and caring for him during his final months, Parton neglected her own health. In September, she canceled public appearances due to kidney stone complications, then postponed her Las Vegas residency from December to September 2026.

Fans feared the worst. But on October 8, Parton posted an Instagram video setting the record straight with characteristic directness.

“Lately everybody thinks that I am sicker than I am. Do I look sick? I wanted you to know that I’m not dying.”

The clarity and humor with which she addressed public speculation spoke volumes about her relationship with her audience—one built on honesty and a refusal to be pitied.

What Comes Next

Even as she navigates loss and health challenges, Parton is preparing for new chapters. Her stage production Dolly: A True Original Musical is scheduled to premiere in Nashville this July before moving to Broadway in 2026. She’s also released her career-spanning book, Star of the Show: My Life on Stage, inviting readers into the inner life of a woman who has spent decades wearing her heart on her sleeve for public consumption.

“I’m at that point in my life where I just want to be able to do good things that can be carried on,” Parton said. “I’m proud of my legacy so far, and I hope to just continue to do things that might be of use to other people.”

On sharing her joys and sorrows publicly over the decades, she added with characteristic vulnerability: “I’ve had to wear my heart on my sleeve for a long time now, and I cry easier than I used to. But it’s just leaving your life wide open for everybody to look right at you, right through you and right into you … I hope they see my heart.”

At nearly 80, Dolly Parton remains what she’s always been: a working girl with uncommonly large dreams, a woman who refused to settle for what the world told her she should be. And if her track record is any measure, she’s far from finished.