CMA to pay tribute to Dolly Parton with ABC live special
The Country Music Association and ABC will honor Dolly Parton with a special that will air in October.
Titled "CMA Presents I Will Always Love You: A Celebration of Dolly Parton," the special will feature the late singer's friends and fans gathering to sing her iconic songs and celebrate her life and legacy. The show will will be filmed at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee, which also hosted the premiere of Parton's "Dolly" musical in 2025.
Parton died on Aug. 25 at the age of 80 following what her family said was a "brief" battle with cancer. The beloved country music superstar was known as much for her philanthropy and entrepreneurship as she was for her music.
“Dolly Parton belonged to the whole world, but she was born of this industry, and this industry owes her a debt of gratitude that words alone cannot repay,” CMA CEO Sarah Trahern said. "This special is our way of saying thank you, on behalf of every artist, industry member and fan who found a piece of themselves in her music.”
Along with the special, the CMA and Belmont will donate a portion of proceeds from the special to benefit Parton's Imagination Library, a book-gifting program that has given away nearly 308 million books to children since 1995 to encourage reading.
The "CMA Presents I Will Always Love You: A Celebration of Dolly Parton" will air live on Wednesday, Oct. 21 at 9 p.m. ET on ABC and Disney+. The program will be available to stream the following day on Hulu.
The Walt Disney Co. is the parent company of ABC News, Disney+ and Hulu.
