Dolly Parton, who died Tuesday at the age of 80, was one of the most-lauded artists of the past six decades, culminating with the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award at the 2025 Governors Awards last November. It was the last of hundreds of accolades in her storied career.
Since debuting on the Grand Ole Opry stage at just 13, Parton became a trailblazer, writing herself into the canon of American songwriting with hits like “Jolene” and “I Will Always Love You.” Over the years, she extended her influence into Grammy, Emmy, Oscar, and even Tony territory.
Parton’s relationship with the Grammys is nothing short of historic. She has earned 11 Grammy Awards from 55 nominations, placing her among the most-nominated female artists in the show’s history. She won her first Grammy in 1978 for Best Female Country Vocal Performance for her Here You Come Again album. In 2011, she received the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, and two of her most beloved songs — “Jolene” and “I Will Always Love You” — have been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. Her 1971 classic “Coat of Many Colors” was selected for the Library of Congress’ National Recording Registry.
In 2017, she returned to the Grammy spotlight with a win for Best Country Duo/Group Performance, joining forces with Pentatonix on an a cappella rendition of “Jolene.”
Though she has never won a competitive Oscar, Parton was nominated for Best Original Song twice: for “9 to 5” (1981), the feminist anthem from the workplace comedy in which she also starred, and “Travelin’ Thru” (2006), written for the LGBTQ-themed drama Transamerica.
On the television front, Parton made a significant mark. Her first Emmy nomination came in 1978 for The Cher… Special. Decades later, in 2021, she won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Television Movie as executive producer of the Netflix holiday special Dolly Parton’s Christmas on the Square. She was recognized for other TV projects she produced and starred in, including Dolly Parton’s Heartstrings: These Old Bones (2020), Dolly Parton’s Christmas of Many Colors: Circle of Love (2017), and Dolly Parton’s Mountain Magic Christmas (2023).
On stage, she received a Tony nomination for Best Original Score for the musical 9 to 5, which premiered on Broadway in 2009.
In the world of country music, few artists rivaled Parton’s impact. She won 13 Academy of Country Music Awards (from 44 nominations) and 10 Country Music Association Awards (from 45 nominations), including Entertainer of the Year in 1978 — making her the first woman to win the honor solo. Her accolades also included 13 CMT Music Awards, 48 BMI Awards, three American Music Awards, a GLAAD Media Award, and one Billboard Music Award, despite her many appearances across Billboard charts. Most recently, in 2024, Billboard named her the No. 1 Greatest Country Artist of All Time. She was enshrined in the Grammy Hall of Fame, the Country Music Hall of Fame, the Gospel Music Association Hall of Fame, and the Songwriters Hall of Fame.
Her reach extended beyond Nashville. In 2022, Parton was inducted in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. She also received the National Medal of the Arts from the U.S. Congress and was a 2006 Kennedy Center Honoree.
But not everything Dolly did was golden: She received a Razzie Award for Worst Original Song for the track “Drinkin’stein” from Rhinestone, something we think she would have accepted with her trademark good humor.
“I’ve been blessed more than I ever dreamed possible,” she said in a taped speech accepting her Hersholt Award. “It makes me want to dream new ways to lift people up.”
A version of this story published in June 2025 when she was announced as the recipient of the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award.
