Remembering Dolly Parton, 1946–2026: the Mentor Taylor Grew Up On, and Her Final Message to the Couple
Taylor Swift TodayShow Notes
Dolly Parton died Tuesday in Nashville at 80, after what her representatives called a brief battle with cancer. Her nephew, Bryan Seaver, announced it in a video on her official Instagram; her team said she spent her life bringing joy, laughter, hope and integrity to everything she touched. This week's episode sets the usual show aside. Lyla looks at what Dolly meant to Taylor Swift specifically — the Nashville songwriter who kept her publishing, ran her own business, and made it possible for a girl with a guitar and a notebook to imagine doing the same. Dolly turned down Elvis rather than give up half of "I Will Always Love You." Decades later, Taylor re-recorded six albums to get hers back. And one more thing, which nobody could have known at the time. A few weeks ago Taylor and Travis gave $2 million to Dolly's Imagination Library, and Dolly answered with a video — thanking them, making a joke, and singing a line of her most famous song. It turned out to be one of her last public moments. Taylor's full tribute is on her Instagram, and it's worth reading in her own words.
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More from Taylor Swift Today
Taylor Swift closed the sixth annual Academy Museum Gala in Los Angeles on Oct. 17 with four songs — her first event ever associated with the Motion Picture Academy, and an unmistakable opening move in a campaign for her first Oscar nomination. “I Knew It, I Knew You,” her Toy Story 5 song written with Jack Antonoff, is eligible for Best Original Song. To be there, she skipped a Chiefs game. Lyla on what the campaign looks like, why the gala is the room that matters, and the behind-the-scenes clip from the Patient Zero set that fans can’t stop watching.
Paul McCartney has finally told the story of performing at Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce's wedding. On Jimmy Kimmel Live, he said Swift asked him personally — and asked for "I Want to Hold Your Hand," which he hadn't played live since 1964. She was onstage with him, and he told her: you should sing along, and you should sing it to your man. Lyla also has Taylor's surprise SNL cameo for Dakota Johnson, the extended cut of "Patient Zero," and a very good birthday weekend in Kansas City.
Taylor Swift is now the most-awarded artist in MTV VMA history. At the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles on Sept. 27 she won Video of the Year for "The Fate of Ophelia," Best Direction for "Opalite," and the first-ever MTV VMA Artist Director Honors — then premiered the "Patient Zero" video she directed herself. Lyla breaks down the full night, the Dolly Parton dedication that stopped the room, and Travis's one-word reaction from Kansas City.
Taylor Swift surprise-released four new songs this week on The Life of a Showgirl: The Encore, and the reaction is genuinely split — some critics calling the new material sharper than the original album, others calling a surprise deluxe a cash-in after she insisted the record was complete. Tonight she premieres the "Patient Zero" video, which she directed, at the MTV VMAs, where one win would make her the most-awarded artist in the show's history. Lyla breaks down all four tracks, the reviews, and a very good week in the football stands. 🎵 Four new songs: "Patient Zero," "Cleveland!," "Pink Clouding" and "Babylon," written in Sweden with Max Martin and Shellback.
Football is back and Taylor Swift was at Arrowhead Monday night, watching the Chiefs open their season with a 31-10 win over Denver — sitting in a suite with Tom Cruise, who was a guest at the July wedding. Lyla gets into the return, plus Mariska Hargitay on Jimmy Kimmel saying she's "still floating" from that night, and a new detail from Joe Buck about how Travis reacted when he first saw Taylor coming down the aisle. And the countdown to September 27, when one VMA win makes her the most-awarded artist in the show's history. Below the fold: 🏈 Monday Night Football at GEHA Field at Arrowhead. Travis pulled in a 59-yard catch; Patrick Mahomes returned from last season's knee injury. Taylor watched with her parents and her mother-in-law.