logo
episode-header-image
Nov 2023
22m 23s

Culture chat: the unknowable Dolly Parto...

Financial Times
About this episode

This Friday, we’re talking about the deification of Dolly Parton, or, as we like to call her, Saint Dolly. Her new release Rockstar comes out today – a 30-track rock album that features duets with artists such as Paul McCartney, Sting, Elton John and Stevie Nicks on cover versions of their classic songs. The album feels a bit like a karaoke album, but we had a lot of fun listening to it – partially because Parton is so easy to love. So how did Parton become such a cultural icon? What does she represent? And why do we want a Saint Dolly? Lilah is joined by US media correspondent Anna Nicolaou and FT Magazine’s food and drink editor (and long-time Dollyhead) Harriet Fitch Little. 

-------

We love hearing from you. Lilah is on Instagram @lilahrap. You can email her at lilah.raptopoulos@ft.com.

-------

Links (all FT links get you past the paywall): 

– Rockstar by Dolly Parton is available to stream now, on all music streaming platforms. 

– Here’s the FT’s review of Rockstar, by our pop critic Ludo Hunter-Tilney: https://on.ft.com/3ufuiql 

– Harriet unpacks the history of Parton’s hit ‘9 to 5’ for the FT column Life of a Song: https://on.ft.com/49F9Uiz

– Anna is on X @annanicolaou, Harriet is on X at @HarrietFL and Instagram at @huffffle

More or less: 

– Harriet recommends Jury Duty, available to stream free on Amazon Prime

– For great local-feeling restaurants in New York, Lilah has a hundred recommendations, but here are three: Claud, a wine bar in the East Village, Names in Prospect Lefferts Gardens, and (the classic) Frankie’s in Carroll Gardens

– Here’s the article Harriet mentioned, ‘The UK’s 19 cosiest winter restaurants – according to FT writers’: https://on.ft.com/3MNmZwy

– Anna hates grey wood floors

-------

Special FT subscription offers for Life and Art podcast listeners, from 50% off a digital subscription to a $1/£1/€1 trial, are here: http://ft.com/lifeandart

-------

Original music by Metaphor Music. Mixing and sound design by Breen Turner and Sam Giovinco. Clips courtesy of Big Machine Records.


Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Up next
Jan 2025
Our final episode: thank you
This is it. Today we present you a massive special episode full of wisdom, which answers your final pressing questions. Listeners wrote in from around the world — from Perth to Virginia to Prague — asking about music, cooking, careers, home, fashion and how to live a good life. L ... Show More
59m 39s
Dec 2024
Cultural predictions for 2025: the year we accept the chaos
It’s a time-honored tradition: for the third year in a row, FT Weekend editor-at-large Matt Vella joins Lilah to reflect on this past year, and muse on the coming one. We’ve asked listeners to send their predictions and wishes for 2025, and today we’re talking through them! Will ... Show More
34m 37s
Dec 2024
The perfect winter survival guide
Today we are bringing you a winter survival guide, full of deceptively small tips that will make winter unmeasurably better. How do we best appreciate these cold, dark months? How do we stay stimulated, but also reject the grind? Our FT Weekend Magazine’s resident “winter goddess ... Show More
29m 50s
Recommended Episodes
May 2023
The Cult of Dolly Parton
America's favorite buxom, rhinestone-clad Southern songstress, Dolly Parton, has a "cult following" like no other celebrity. Thanks to her unmistakable image, her "Dollyisms," her theme park, her illustrious music, and her ability to transcend politics, "Saint Dolly" has become s ... Show More
52m 50s
Oct 2023
254. Dolly Parton: How to Make Decisions (Even If They Break Your Heart)
In this special episode, Glennon, Abby, and Amanda sit down with icon Dolly Parton for a heartfelt conversation about how to start something new at 77, how she mothers the world, and how she broke her own heart when Elvis asked to record her hit song.  Plus, the advice Dolly woul ... Show More
41m 24s
Jun 2021
Pop’s Worst Kept Secret ft. Emily Warren
In 1974 country music, singer songwriter, Dolly Parton got wind that Elvis Presley wanted to record her new song, “I Will Always Love You.“ According to Dolly, the deal fell through when Elvis's manager demanded 50% of the publishing revenue. Dolly refused, released the song hers ... Show More
28m 33s
Dec 2019
Dolly Parton's America (with Jad Abumrad)
There are icons, and then there’s Dolly Parton. The country singer-turned-actress-turned-cultural phenomenon has produced a nearly unparalleled body of work, in both quantity (Parton is the sole or co-author of more than three thousand songs) and in legacy. Despite releasing her ... Show More
40m 50s
Jul 2023
Dolly Parton Sings About Her Life and Other Unfinished Business
Has anyone ever captivated every generation ever quite like Dolly Parton? The absolute master of telling people just enough tells us just enough in her book, My Life So Far. With one liners and smash hits, Dolly might just be one of the best writers in showbiz.  Check out our epi ... Show More
1h 15m
Sep 2023
Shirley Collins, folk singer
Shirley Collins first enjoyed success as one of the leading figures in the British folk revival of the 1960s. She initially performed with her sister, Dolly Collins, and also collaborated with other folk luminaries to create some of the era’s most beloved albums. In the past deca ... Show More
37m 8s
Mar 2024
Beyoncé, Cowboy Carter, and Unpacking Country Music History (With Sam Sanders)
Grab your hat and saddle up! Before the release of Beyonce's "Cowboy Carter," Chelsea and Sam Sanders (co-host of the Vibe Check podcast) talk about the times Beyoncé has come closest to memoir-level vulnerability. They share insights on the history of country music, make a few p ... Show More
46m 5s
Mar 2024
Unscheduled Calls and the Prolific Jo Piazza’s Thingies
This week, we’re talking Thingies with Jo Piazza, author of The Sicilian Inheritance—exactly the escapist, immersive book we want at this very moment—and its companion true-crime podcast…because this woman is one of the most ambitious storytellers you’ve ever encountered, ok? Als ... Show More
50m 16s