Kacey Musgraves honored late country icon Dolly Parton with a heartwarming tribute at the 2026 MTV Video Music Awards on Sunday.
The “Slow Burn” singer took the stage after the video clip of the legendary country icon was played on the giant screen.
Parton was featured in a retro throwback, singing “I wish you joy, I wish you lots of happiness, but you know what, above all I wish you to love,” singing one of her most beloved hits, “I Will Always Love You.”
The video of Parton singing then seamlessly transitioned to Musgraves, dressed in a bright pink outfit adorned with feathers, taking over the song in front of a star-studded audience at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles.
After the show, host Snoop Dogg said, “This is how you honor a legend…we love you Dolly.”
It was announced that 38-year-old Musgraves will perform at the awards ceremony for the first time in five years on Wednesday.
The country singer was also nominated in the Best Country category for her song “Dry Spell,” along with Ella Langley (“Choosin’ Texas”), Lainey Wilson (“Somewhere Over Laredo”), Luke Combs (“Back in the Saddle”), Shaboozey (“Cowgirl”), Stella Lefty (“Boston”) and Tucker Wetmore (“Brunette”).
Musgraves and Parton previously shared the stage at the 2019 Grammy awards and performed a cover of Parton’s 1977 hit “Here You Come Again”.
As Page Six previously reported, Parton died on August 25 at the age of 80.
“After bravely facing a brief battle with cancer, Dolly departed her Earthly life today at the Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center, surrounded by her loved ones,” her reps said in a statement to Page Six, referring to a hospital in Nashville, Tennessee.
“Our beloved Dolly Parton spent her life and career bringing joy, laughter, hope and honesty to everything she touched. Her unparalleled generosity reached the lives of countless people she would never meet, yet she was always there to lend a helping hand.”
Although Parton has kept her battle with cancer a secret, she has frequently been giving fans updates on her health after she was forced to withdraw from a show at the Dollywood theme park in Tennessee last September.
“It turned out there was an infection and the doctor said, ‘You don’t need to travel right now, so you need a few days to recover,'” he told fans in a pre-recorded video at the time.
In the days that followed, Parton postponed her Las Vegas residency as she underwent “several procedures” and backed out of attending her 80th birthday celebration at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville in January.
The “9 to 5” singer made her last public appearance in June at a ribbon-cutting ceremony for “Dolly’s Tennessean Travel Stop.”
News of Parton’s death comes a year after the singer’s husband, Carl Dean, died in March 2025 at the age of 82.
Since then, many celebrities have paid tribute to Parton, including her goddaughter Miley Cyrus, her “9 to 5” co-stars Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin, as well as her “Steel Magnolias” co-stars.
Earlier this month, Sally Field and country superstar Reba McEntire paid tribute to Parton at the 2026 Emmy Awards, while actress Julia Stiles also honored her during an episode of “Dancing with the Stars.”