Well darling, it's great to see you
and Well, I know it's you always love.
great to see you.
Well, thank you. I know you love Christmas.
Let's begin by talking about how Dollywood
is going to celebrate the holidays.
Well like we have been doing for years
and years and people absolutely love all
the lights, all the food, all the music,
all the special things that we do.
And it's just like a magical.
And it's just like a winter Wonderland.
It truly is and that's how
we kind of describe it.
So I think the families look so forward to
having a place to go where they feel safe.
And it's all self contained.
But it's just like a little world
of its own and we have some.
Everything there.
Absolutely. Do you have a favorite
Christmas tradition? Personally
and a favorite Christmas memory?
Oh, I have so many of those
growing up in the Smoky Mountains.
Earth is more a simpler Christmas then
we were having at Dollywood these days.
But I just always love all the memories
often talk about the Christmas when we all
gave all of what we were going to get for
Christmas so we could buy mom a wedding band.
Mom and Dad got married so young that they
didn't have any money to buy a wedding band.
So they've been married and
had a whole house full of kids.
So one year, Daddy said well,
why don't we just?
Instead of everybody getting presents,
we buy your mom a wedding ring.
So we did and we did a movie
about that as well.
So that was a real special time for us,
but the traditions we always
have is decorating our tree.
And even though now we're going
to afford all the the good lights
and all the beautiful stuff,
we always like to try to have
that one little tree.
That kind of is old time me and kind
of makes us think of Mom and Daddy.
Well, at the end of 2020 you said
that you were going to slow down.
Perfume novel ice cream enemies.
Grammy Time 100 most influential.
Those are just a few of your
highlights from the last year.
Dolly if that's slowing down,
I'm afraid to ask what
you have planned in 2022.
Well, I said I was going
to slow down, but I lied.
But I thought I was going to kind
of just be more involved in doing.
You know, more more stuff.
But as I said before.
I can't slow down,
that's why I would never retire
because I always make the
statement that is so true that
I've dreamed myself into a corner
and all my dreams have come true.
Now I have to be responsible
for all those things,
so it requires a lot of work 'cause
I don't want other people just
taking my things as long as I'm
living and me not being involved.
But I personally love to work
and I love to see all the new
things that come from the,
from the dreams that have come true
just creating new dreams so I have no.
I have no intentions of.
Really slowing down.
I just dream about it sometimes
when I'm really tired.
I think I'm going to slow down.
That just means I'm going to
get on the bus and sleep 12
hours instead of five.
So is that downtime for you?
Do you have a guilty pleasure?
Oh, I'm actually in my life is just so is
there such a way of life with me that I,
my routines and the things I
do are just so natural to me.
But I love to cook.
That's probably and I love to eat
but I I love to cook real old country
foods and and have family over that
like you know they still like to eat
that kind of food and they say oh this
tastes just like mom's and that's the
greatest compliment in the world to me.
You know, it seems that loss has
shadowed so much of last year.
For some many I know you lost your
brother and you lost Uncle Bill talk
about what's brought you comfort
during your grieving season and
how do you encourage other people.
Well, it's always hard,
but I think we're in a person of faith is
always the best thing for the way we did.
I lost two brothers.
I lost my brother Floyd and my brother
Randy Floyd was a year before and
then I lost my uncle bail and then I
lost Kenny Rogers and so many people
that were so close and dear to me.
But I just think, well,
you just have to hang on to the most
wonderful things you remember about
them and not let them die away.
Just kind of know that they're never.
Really gone from your heart and from your
memories that's what I love that old song,
precious memories,
unseen angels I love that line because
they're always like angels are still being
there for me but it's always painful.
But when they die because they're
ill and sick and in pain it's easier
than to someone suddenly going.
But it's never easy but I just hang on
knowing that I'm being a person of faith
that I'm going to see them again someday.
I have to ask, how's Mr Karl Dean?
Mr Carl Dean is Mr Carl Dean.
He's always funny and always got
something we didn't crazy to say
but were still hanging in there.
We've been added a long time.
He slowed It. down some.
Now he has retired so he gets to
lay around a lot more than I do,
but he still likes to feel like he's,
you know, being useful
and doing little things,
but he's more apt to be able
to be lazy than I.
Yeah, all right. So what's
on your agenda in 2022?
Well, I have a new book coming
out with James Patterson.
We've written a novel together and so
I've written songs for that as well.
Of 12 songs that have to do with
the characters and situations that
happen in the story in the book,
and they're going to come
out at the same time.
So we're planning a marketing plan where
we kind of go on TV and do some verb
promotion Emotions together, together.
which is going to be fun 'cause we had
a we got to be real good friends while
we worked We worked on the book. on.
So that's the thing, most Most exciting.
exciting Coming up pretty soon.
and lastly, do you dress up for Halloween?
I used to. I used to address like
Dolly Parton Dolly Parton for the
last several years. yeah. You No,
pull it off well.
actually actually I do.
Sincerely, I actually just wear bigger
hair and I wear a bigger beauty market.
I just over exaggerate so I could
go with my little nieces and
nephews and people think that I'm
just just dressed dress up like up
Dolly like Dolly Parton Parton.
and And they dress they dress in
whatever in whatever they do they do.
and I'm just an over immoral.
America If there's is such there a something?
thing as a more
Is there more over exaggerated
oversaturating darling, dollars?
but it's But fun it's fun to do
to do that that because because.
everybody just gets kicked.
They have no idea to me.
And also last question,
I do want to ask this really quickly.
What can Dollywood guests expect in 2022?
I know you've got a lot of
expansion plan the next 10 years,
but is there something this year
coming or coming up next year
that you're most excited about?
I don't think we have a big expansion.
We're working on our new resort so we're
very excited about that and but we're just
going to make the most of the things we
have and we have a few little surprises
that will be announced in a little later on.
But now we've we put a lot of money in a lot
of new things in the last two or three years,
so we're going to just we're
getting getting prepared to really
do a great thing with our resort,
so that's going to be.
A big deal next year,
but the park is always great.
The food is great,
the Raj great the entertainments great.
So we'll still be doing all
of our special things.
Well, it's great to talk to you.
Thanks OK. again for giving us time and
you continue to make us proud. Miss Dolly.
Alright, well I love talking to you.
Always Yeah see you alright, later.
well see you later thank you.