Dolly Parton’s sister criticises “AI and endless garbage” shared following country icon’s death

Dolly Parton‘s sister has hit out after being subjected to a “tremendous amount of AI and endless garbage” following the country icon’s death.

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Parton died aged 80 last month (August 25), with her representatives later confirming that it followed a “brief battle with cancer”.

Since her death numerous musicians have honoured the late musician including Kacey Musgraves who performed ‘Here You Come Again’ in Boston, while Maisie Peters covered the same song at Reading Festival.

Jack White also played ‘Jolene’ at a London show, while Orville Peck delivered a rendition of ‘I Will Always Love You’. Olivia Rodrigo also dedicated her duet with Sarah McLachlan at Daisy Chain Fields to the later singer.

But her sister Stella has now shared that the family have also been subjected to “incredible pressure and insensitivity from strangers”.

She added: “Every human experiences pain and loss in life and my family is no different. Sadly, because of the way our lives have been lived in front of the public, we have no choice but to be subjected to incredible pressure and insensitivity from strangers.

There is a tremendous amount of AI and endless garbage being posted everyday and it’s been challenging to absorb and or ignore.”.

She went on to criticise “those who are in the business of exploiting the loss and tragedies of others” while noting they will eventually “move on to the next stampede of endless misinformation.”.

Elsewhere, Parton’s estate recently confirmed plans for an inaugural “star-studded” two-day DollyFest event in 2027 in Nashville and London.

The bash, which will honour the late country icon’s life and legacy, will be staged across two consecutive weekends next year, with specific dates to be announced in the coming weeks.

DollyFest organiser Danny Nozell, the founder and CEO of CTK Enterprises, said in a statement via BBC News, that it will take place instead of a traditional public memorial for the country icon.

Parton was laid to rest following a private funeral, last weekend. She was interred at Nashville’s Woodlawn Memorial Park, where fellow country stars Porter Wagoner, George Jones and Tammy Wynette are also buried.

Her husband of nearly 60 years, Carl Dean, was also laid to rest there last year.

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