08/25/2026
Growing up in my house Dolly was held as high on a pedestal as Joey Ramone, AC/DC, and Jesus. My mother's family is split between Monterrey, MX and Pikeville, TN. Helluva combination of folks who answered the post WW2 call to put America on wheels in Detroit and move up here.
Dolly was the catalyst to us grandkids pulling our grandparents more to the left, and that wasn't easy to do 30 years ago. But I figured something out and it was easy to just say "I dunno Grandma, I don't think Dolly would say some stuff like that about someone else." 🤷
I'm not a big fan of country music and the outlaw side has always been the stuff that tickles my need for something close to the Smoky Mountains where some of my DNA comes from. Ha, I just realized how on brand that is for me. Smoky mountains. Thankful I got to do the Tennessee trip as a kid a lot of us do from Michigan. Peacocks, Bears, and Dollywood. I'll always feel akin to those who trust in the Highwaymen enough to make art with them and champion them after almost all of them are gone. 🖤
Rest In Peace to a true 1 of 1.
Photo: Getty Images sourced from Variety
