Dolly Parton talks gaining confidence through her style, interests in launching cosmetics and wigs lines

Dolly Parton talks gaining confidence through her style, interests in launching cosmetics and wigs lines

The country star recalled experimenting with her looks growing up.

ByShafiq Najib and Caitlyn Goodhue

November 8, 2023, 7:25 PM

Dolly Parton is reflecting on her earlier days as a young artist gaining confidence through her style, as well as the inspiration behind her past looks, and is opening up about her interest in new business ventures.

Appearing on ABC News' 15th annual CMA Awards special, “Dolly Parton: From Rhinestones to Rock & Roll,” the country legend, known for her bold and colorful looks, said her choice in outfits has long played a role in boosting her self-confidence.

Dolly Parton and Robin Roberts appear in this image from their interview together.Larry Mccormack/ABC

“That's why I always liked bright clothes, and [why] I always liked shiny things, 'cause I felt like … if you're gonna be a star, you need to shine,” she told ABC News' Robin Roberts during the interview, which aired Tuesday, Nov. 7 on ABC and is now available to stream on Hulu.

Elaborating on her style, she continued, “I never thought of myself as fashionable. I never tried to follow trends or anything. I just always wore what I felt comfortable in, what I felt suited my personality, and still do.”

Parton said she believes wearing good clothes is like listening to a happy song, explaining, “You know, you feel happy, you feel good.”

“It's like a happy song. And if you don't [feel your best], you're just kinda down in the dumps … you're wearing the blues, I guess,” she said, laughing.

The “9 to 5” singer also touches on the subject of fashion in her new book, “Behind the Seams: My Life in Rhinestones,” which was released last month, sharing that her style of clothing is similar to her music, representing different periods of her life.

Growing up, Parton said she and her family lived “in the mountains, in a rural area” where they grew their own food and kept their own farm animals. She told Roberts her very early dresses were made out of sacks.

“My dad would buy these big sacks of food … for the cows, and horse[s], and stuff,” she explained. “They got to where they would make them with print…. We started wearing sack dresses long before the sacks were fashionable, long before, like, Diane von Fürstenberg and those people started doing that.”

Parton said her mother Avie Lee Owens “was the first designer I knew,” adding that her mom “would make things for us out of whatever we had, out of the scraps.”

“And that's where my little coat of many colors came from — from fabric that people would give her,” she continued. “And she would make patches, and quilts, and curtains and everything out of it. But our sack dresses, we were proud of them, especially when they started having floral patterns.”

Recalling some of her own experience experimenting with her looks growing up, Parton told Roberts she would take the shoulder pads out of her grandmother's coat to use them as a push-up bra.

“When I started growing up, I always wanted to be more than what I was,” she said. “I was not a natural beauty. So, I just wanted to enhance anything I had, any way I could.”

Highlighting the importance of wearing what makes you feel confident, she added, “If you don't feel good about anything you wear, whether it's your makeup, whether it's your hair, and especially your clothes, you're always self-conscious. You're conscious of everything. And you're not really in the moment.”

In addition to being a country star, Parton is also a savvy businesswoman: She owns her whole catalog of songs, a stake in her theme park, Dollywood, and has published multiple books, among other things.

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Asked about other ventures she might be interested in pursuing, she replied, “Well, I want to do a great cosmetic line, and I want to do a great line of wigs. I just think that the right thing will come at the right time. But I definitely want to do makeup and hair.”

“I wake up with new dreams all the time,” she added. “So, I just keep my eyes wide open. Don't wanna miss a chance.”

Parton's iconic styles through the years

From performing onstage at festivals to attending movie premieres, Parton never fails to bring out memorable looks for her fans.

Scroll below to see some of her most iconic fashion moments.

In 1980, Parton attended the premiere of “9 to 5” with co-stars Lily Tomlin and Jane Fonda, wearing a stunning pink lace gown designed by the film's costume designer, Ann Roth.

Dolly Parton, Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin attend the film premiere of “9 to 5” in New York City, December 5, 1980.Tom Wargacki/WireImage/Getty Images

At the New York premiere of “Steel Magnolias” in 1989, Parton sported a fitted dress covered in rhinestones, skyscraper hair, and long red nails, with red lipstick to match.

Musician Dolly Parton attends the ‘Steel Magnolias’ premiere on November 9, 1989 at Cineplex Odeon Century Plaza Cinemas in Century City, California.Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images

At Glastonbury Festival in 2014, Parton wore a bejeweled white pantsuit with a layered chain belt and sparkling jewelry. She finished the look with her signature voluminous blonde hair, and colorful makeup and nails.

Dolly Parton performs at the “Glastonbury Festival.”Rune Hellestad/Corbis via Getty Images

Parton showed up to accept the Tex Ritter Award at the 51st Academy of Country Music Awards in Las Vegas in 2016 wearing a colorful, shimmering, multicolored coat topped with a glittering collar and necktie.

Honoree Dolly Parton accepts the Tex Ritter Award onstage during the 51st Academy of Country Music Awards at MGM Grand Garden Arena on April 3, 2016 in Las Vegas.Ethan Miller/Getty Images

Parton was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in November 2022. The music icon donned a skintight, shiny black leather suit to receive the honor, and to perform her song “Rockin'.”

Dolly Parton performs onstage during the 37th Annual Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony at Microsoft Theater on November 05, 2022 in Los Angeles.Kevin Mazur/Getty Images