Dolly Parton (born January 19, 1946) is an American country singer, songwriter, composer, author and actress.

She was born Dolly Rebecca Parton in Sevierville, Tennessee, the fourth of twelve children born to Robert Lee Parton and Avie Lee Owens, and grew up "dirt poor" in a rustic one-room cabin in the Smoky Mountains, also described as a "run-down farm" near Locust Ridge. Her siblings are Willadeene Parton (a poet), David Parton, Denver Parton, Bobby Parton, Stella Parton (a singer), Cassie Parton, Larry Parton (who died shortly after birth), Randy Parton (a singer), twins Floyd Parton (a songwriter) and Freida Parton, and Rachel Dennison (an actress).

Dolly was raised Assembly of God, a Pentecostal denomination, and music was a very large part of her church experience. She once told an interviewer that her grandfather was a Pentecostal "Holy Roller" preacher and today, when appearing in live concerts, she frequently performs spiritual songs. Parton, however, professes no denomination, claiming to be only Christian while adding that she believes that all Earth's peoples are God's children.

She began her entertainment career as a child, singing on local radio and television in East Tennessee. At age 12 she was appearing on Knoxville TV, and at 13 she was recording on a small label and appearing at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville. When she graduated from high school in 1964 she moved to Nashville, taking many traditional folkloric elements and popular music from East Tennessee with her.

On May 30, 1966, at the age of 20, she married Carl Dean, who ran an asphalt-paving business (whom she met upon her first day in Nashville two years earlier), in Ringgold, Georgia. She has remained with Dean, who has always shunned publicity and stayed in the background to an extraordinary degree, refusing to accompany his wife to almost every public appearance she has made since their marriage. Her extramarital relationships have been the subject of tabloid speculation for decades, with her heterosexuality often being questioned. When asked once, "Do you love women?" she replied "Yes, my mother was a woman."

Parton is known by many for her wit and distingushing wardrobe, as well as her boundless compassion and kind-heartedness.

Parton's initial success came as a songwriter, with her songs being covered by Kitty Wells, Hank Williams, Jr., Skeeter Davis, and a number of others. She signed with Monument Records in late 1965, where she was initially pitched as a bubblegum pop singer, resulting in just one chart single, "Happy, Happy Birthday Baby," which went to No. 108 pop in 1965. After a series of additional pop singles that failed to chart, label executives decided to allow her to sing country music after the success of her composition "Put It Off Until Tomorrow" as recorded by Bill Phillips. With Parton singing uncredited harmony on the single, Phillips' version of her song went to No. 6 on the country charts in 1966. Her first country single, "Dumb Blonde" (one of the few songs she recorded during this period that she herself did not write), reached No. 24 country 1967, followed later the same year with "Something Fishy," which went to No. 17. The two songs anchored her first full-length album, Hello I'm Dolly, that same year.

Late in that same year, Parton was asked to join the weekly syndicated country music TV program hosted by Porter Wagoner, with whom she became half of a highly successful duet. She also signed with RCA Records, Wagoner's label, during this period, where she would remain for the next two decades. Their first single together, a cover of Tom Paxton's "The Last Thing on My Mind," reached the top ten on the U.S. country charts in late 1967, and was the first of over a dozen duet singles to chart for them during the next several years.

Parton is a hugely successful songwriter, having begun by writing country songs with strong elements of folk music in them based upon her upbringing in humble mountain surroundings. Her songs "Coat of Many Colors" and "Jolene" have become classics in the field, as have a number of others.

She stayed with the Wagoner show and continued to record duets with him for seven years, then made a break to become a solo artist. In 1974, her song "I Will Always Love You" was released and went to #1 on the country charts, though the single did not "crossover" to the pop charts (as "Jolene" had done). Around the same time, Elvis Presley indicated that he wanted to cover the song. Parton was interested until Presley's manager, Colonel Tom Parker, told her that she would have to sign over half of the publishing rights if Elvis recorded the song (as was the standard procedure for songs Elvis recorded). Parton refused and that decision is credited with helping make her many millions of dollars in royalties from the song over the years.

During the mid-1970s, Dolly had her eyes set on expanding her audience base. The first step towards meeting this goal was her attempt a variety show, Dolly. Even though it had high ratings, the show lasted merely one season, with Dolly asking out of her contract due to the stress it was causing her vocal chords.