Dolly Parton is getting a tribute from her sister Stella with an album and a U.K. tour celebrating the singer’s contribution to the music industry.
Stella Parton, 67, a country singer in her own right with more than 30 albums under her belt, grew up with older sister Dolly as one of 12 siblings in the Tennessee mountains.
Music was a big part of family life, Parton said.
"We didn’t have a telephone, we didn’t have a television ‘til I was 10 years old, so music was a big part of our lives. It was something that soothed us, it was something that we could be creative with, because my mother would soothe us with singing," she said in an interview.
Parton will perform songs from her 2016 album Mountain Songbird: A Sister’s Tribute and the More Power to Ya duet she recorded with Dolly Parton, at a concert in London on Saturday that kicks off the tour.
"My sister has written great story songs and that’s kind of what I’m going to be doing — telling my story about these songs from my perspective as a sister, and how much I love and respect the contribution she’s made to not only country music, but to the world hopefully," Parton said.
Parton said she was unfazed by her award-winning sister’s fame.
"She’s my sister and she’ll always have my back and I’ll always have hers. She’s not a star to me; she’s just my sister," she said.
