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Dolly Rebecca Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, actress, and philanthropist, known primarily as a country musician. After achieving success as a songwriter for others, Parton's debut album, Hello, I'm Dolly, was released in 1967, commencing a career spanning 60 years and 49 studio albums. Her forty-ninth solo studio album, Rockstar (2023), became her highest-charting Billboard 200 album, peaking at number-three.

Described as a "country legend", Parton has sold more than 100 million records worldwide, making her one of the best-selling music artists of all time. Her music includes Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA)-certified gold, platinum and multi-platinum awards. She has had 25 singles reach No. 1 on the Billboard country music charts, a record for a female artist (tied with Reba McEntire). She has 44 career Top 10 country albums, a record for any artist, and she has 110 career-charted singles over the past 40 years. Parton has composed over 3,000 songs, including "I Will Always Love You" (a two-time U.S. country chart-topper, and an international hit for Whitney Houston), "Jolene", "Coat of Many Colors", and "9 to 5". As an actress, she has starred in the films 9 to 5 (1980) and The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (1982), for each of which she earned Best Actress Golden Globe nominations, as well as Rhinestone (1984), Steel Magnolias (1989), Straight Talk (1992), and Joyful Noise (2012).

Parton has received various accolades, including 11 Grammy Awards from 50 nominations. She has won ten Country Music Association Awards, including Entertainer of the Year, being one of seven female artists to achieve it. Parton has five Academy of Country Music Awards (including Entertainer of the Year), four People's Choice Awards, and three American Music Awards. She is also in a select group to have received at least one nomination from the Academy Awards, Grammy Awards, Tony Awards, and Emmy Awards. In 2005, Parton received the National Medal of Arts.

Outside of her work in the music and film industries, she also co-owns The Dollywood Company, which manages a number of entertainment venues including the Dollywood theme park, the Splash Country water park, and a number of dinner theater venues such as The Dolly Parton Stampede and Pirates Voyage. She has founded a number of charitable and philanthropic organizations, chief among them being the Dollywood Foundation, who manage a number of projects to bring education and poverty relief to East Tennessee, where she was raised.

Full article: Dolly Parton