Dolly Parton has been a force in the music industry for decades. A musician she worked with said people took her seriously, even as a child.
Dolly Parton has been navigating the music industry since she was a child. Her uncle drove her to performance venues and recording studios while she was still in school, and she made regular appearances on a local radio show. This taught her how to make her way in the male-dominated industry. According to one musician she knew, Parton didn’t let anyone push her around.
Dolly Parton always stood up for herself in the music industry
In 1956, Parton began making appearances on Cas Walker’s Farm and Home Hour. The radio show allowed her to showcase her talents to the Knoxville area and provided her with her first taste of fame. She was a child and had begun to work with older professional musicians. She didn’t appear to be intimidated by them, though.
“We had twelve or fifteen men and boys on the show and you know there’s always somebody smartin’ off,” banjo player Bud Brewster said in the book Dolly by Alanna Nash. “But she’d always take it good. You could tease her and she’d always laugh about it. And she knew how to handle ’em. She asked one of the boys to play something with her one time, and he said somethin’ smart to her, and she turned right around and throwed it back at him real heavy.”
Dolly Parton | Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
Brewster recalled Parton’s confident response.
“You’ll pick for me, and you’ll be glad to pick for me when I get through with what I’m gonna do,” she said. “I’m goin’ straight to Cas Walker.”
Even at an early age, Parton employed language to ensure people took her seriously. Brewster paraphrase her response, noting that in reality, “it was a little more, well, it was a little stronger than that!”
Cas Walker believed Dolly Parton’s attitude helped her get ahead in the music industry
Walker, who gave Parton a shot when she told him she’d be willing to work hard to be on his show, believed she always had what it took to be successful.
“She stood her ground and didn’t let nobody push her around,” he said, adding, “She’s amazing how she gets along with people. She’s actually got no bad enemies. She don’t want to hurt nobody, but yet she don’t want nobody to hurt her. She’ll stand up — I mean, she’ll stand up like a bantam, if she has to.”
Walker said she was incredibly independent and driven. He believed that this played a role in her rise to fame.
“Couple of times I wanted to say somethin’ to her about those short dresses, but she’s the kind of person that you’re a little hesitant to say anything to, you know, ’cause she’s got a temper,” he said. “I don’t believe she ever got real mad at me, but she has at someone else, and she would have at me if I hadn’t taken sides with her. Still, I’ve seen her when I knowed that she could shoot me, but she’d just look a hole through me. I’m confident that her independent ways plus her unusual voice put her over.”
She once pulled a gun on a man
Parton’s strength, temper, and independence is present outside the recording studio, too. Years after she was on the Farm and Home Hour, Parton and a friend were out in New York City. A man began to harass them, so Parton pulled out a gun she kept in her purse.
Dolly Parton | Robin Platzer/Images/Getty Images
“So anyway, this guy would not stop,” she told Yahoo. “I said, ‘If you touch me’ — and I was really angry and scared — I said, ‘If you touch me one more time, I’m gonna shoot your, you know, crotch off!’”
She proved she was a force to be reckoned with both on and off the stage.
News
“Mom’s Been Dying for Me To Sing This”: Emmy Russell continues to bring the audience to tears*
“Mom’s Been Dying for Me To Sing This”: Watch Loretta Lynn’s Granddaughter Wow With a Breathtaking Cover Although growing up with Loretta Lynn as her grandmother, Emmy Russell wanted to explore other careers in life other than music. Even with Lynn praising…
*Angel Reese makes history with a positive record only matched three times in NBA and WNBA in over 50 years
Reese leads the league in both total (374) and per game (12.9) rebounds Chicago Sky forward Angel Reese (5) is seen during a WNBA basketball game We’re witnessing a historic season in the WNBA, starting from the draft, which became the most-watched in league history, attracting 2.4…
*Caitlin Clark’s trophy wardrobe has one more addition – A nomination she’s been looking forward to for weeks
Caitlin Clark adds a new accolade to her growing WNBA honors-A nomination she’s been expecting for weeks Caitlin Clark named WNBA Eastern Conference Player of the Week. Caitlin Clark became the second Fever to be named Player of the Week…
*Simone Biles Reveals How Healing Turned Her Into Gymnastics’ GOAT
Victim of Childhood Trauma, Simone Biles Reveals How Houston’s Healing Paved Way for G.O.A.T. Tour Houston turned out to be a blessing in disguise for Simone Biles. While she makes Olympic gymnastics look like a walk in the park, her early…
*Ben Affleck’s representative quickly spoke up about the shocking news that his client was in love with Kick Kennedy.
Ben Affleck responds to Kick Kennedy romance rumors Affleck was rumored to be dating Robert F Kennedy Jr’s daughter, 36, after splitting from Jennifer Lopez As rumors of a budding romance between Ben Affleck and Kathleen “Kick” Kennedy began to…
Fans ‘Can’t Recognize’ Gwen Stefani in New ‘Voice’ Trailer
Good Genes Or Good Docs? Fans React To Gwen Stefani’s ‘Unrecognizable’ Appearance In New ‘Voice’ Trailer: ‘She Aged Backwards’ A new promotional clip for the upcoming 26th season of The Voice was just shared on Instagram, featuring upcoming coaches Gwen Stefani and Snoop Dogg discussing their exciting…
End of content
No more pages to load