The tributes to Dolly Parton are already taking many forms, but two of the biggest are looking beyond the immediate mourning: a festival conceived by Parton herself is being revived for 2027, while Tennessee officials are proposing to rename Nashville International Airport in her honor. The entertainment legend died last week at 80 after a brief cancer battle.
Parton’s Estate revealed today (Aug. 31) that DOLLYFEST will take place in Nashville and London across two consecutive weekends in 2027, transforming what was originally planned as a January 2026 Nashville event into what the Estate describes as a “double-day, double-weekend, double-continent” celebration. The original festival was intended to feature Parton as both performer and host before her health challenges forced her to step back.
“What Dolly started, we will ensure is brought to life,” said her manager Danny Nozell, founder/CEO of CTK Enterprises. Nozell said DOLLYFEST had been a dream of Parton’s, originally intended to coincide with her 80th birthday in Nashville, with the venue booked and announcement prepared before her health issues intervened in August 2025.
The Estate is positioning the event a continuation of something Parton herself wanted to share with fans. “However, as far as a traditional memorial goes, that is not something Dolly wanted,” Nozell said. “So, instead, it feels more appropriate for us to take a beat, let all the tributes that immediately make sense occur naturally, and then, see through this festival-style concept that was truly dreamed up by Dolly.” Further details are forthcoming.
Meanwhile, the sate of Tennessee is considering a tribute of a rather more permanent variety. On Aug. 28, Gov. Bill Lee and Nashville International Airport announced their intent to name BNA in Parton’s honor, a proposal that will come before the Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority at its Sept. 17 meeting.
“Dolly Parton’s extraordinary life is forever woven into the fabric of our state,” Lee said. “From her rural mountain home in East Tennessee to global stages, Dolly carried the Volunteer Spirit with her. At a place where Tennessee welcomes the world, it is fitting that Nashville International Airport would bear the name of our state’s favorite daughter and greet travelers with the enduring legacy of Dolly’s music, generosity, faith and kindness.”
Parton’s team has expressed appreciation for the outpouring of support and said it is open to continuing the conversation around the airport proposal. The initiative would add a very public marker to a legacy that has long extended well beyond Parton’s music, from the Dollywood Foundation and Imagination Library to the hundreds of millions of free books distributed to children worldwide.
Doug Kreulen, president and CEO of the Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority, tied the proposed naming to Parton’s famously expansive idea of hospitality. “Dolly’s remarkable legacy reminds us that what makes Nashville special is our ability to welcome people from every walk of life,” he said. “She understood that dignity, kindness and opportunity should never be defined by where you come from or your socioeconomic status.”
