America said goodbye to Dolly Parton - and now it wants to rename an airport after her
Six days after the country legend died at 80, the tributes are getting bigger: a 2,109% streaming surge, a governor's push to rename Nashville's airport, and a posthumous festival announcement for 2027.
In brief
America said goodbye to Dolly Parton - and now it wants to rename an airport after her
She planned her own funeral down to the shoes. And still, nothing prepared the country for what happened when she was gone.
Dolly Rebecca Parton died on Tuesday, August 25, 2026, in Nashville, Tennessee, at the age of 80. Her representatives confirmed a private battle with cancer. Within hours, the world's response was unlike anything the music industry had seen in years - not grief exactly, but something louder and more immediate. People went straight to their phones and started playing her records.
Luminate, the industry data and analytics company, found that audio and video streams of Parton's discography skyrocketed 2,109% on the day of her death compared to Monday, climbing from 1.2 million to 26.3 million in the U.S. Worldwide, her streams jumped 1,280%, from 2.5 million to 35 million on Tuesday. The country star's on-demand audio streams jumped to 79.7 million, making her the most streamed artist globally in the days that followed.
The numbers reflect something that's hard to fake: people actually needed to hear her. Not as background. As comfort.
A private goodbye, a public outpouring
People reports that only immediate family attended the private funeral - "at Dolly's request, a small, private service," her reps previously said - at Nashville's Woodlawn Memorial Park and Mausoleum, the same cemetery where Parton's late husband, Carl Dean, was interred in a mausoleum in March 2025.
She had requested Whitney Houston's "I Will Always Love You" and the hymn "If We Never Meet Again" at her service - a song she told Entertainment Weekly was her father's favorite, and one played at family funerals going back generations. Long before her death, Dolly had thought about how she wanted to be remembered - from the songs played at her funeral to what she wanted to wear (which, naturally, included her signature high heels).
The singer's great-niece Lainey Parton - who referred to Dolly as "Aunt Granny" - posted on social media Saturday saying she wanted to wait until after her granny was "laid to rest" before trying to put any of it into words.
While the family kept things quiet, the industry did not. Tributes from all across the music industry poured in within hours of her death, including from legends like Billy Joel, Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Daryl Hall, and Carole King. Parton's goddaughter Miley Cyrus paid tribute in an emotional Instagram post, reflecting on their close relationship and the private moments they shared offstage. "The feeling of losing my Aunt Dolly is beyond what feels right to share," Cyrus wrote.
Taylor Swift said in a statement: "A world without Dolly doesn't feel possible, real, or right. But because of the eternally generous way she spent her time on this earth and the countless lives she changed for the better, her legacy will be an everlasting one."
Politicians crossed party lines to say something. President Donald Trump posted that Parton was "one of the greatest Country singers, and far beyond, EVER," and ordered American flags flown at half-staff at all federal sites for one week. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer wrote on X, "Rest in peace, Dolly Parton - a true legend and a force for good." The list of names on the tribute posts ran the entire political spectrum, which is rare. Genuinely rare.
The airport push
Here's where things got concrete fast. Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee and Nashville International Airport announced plans Friday to rename BNA in honor of Parton, following a growing public campaign that surged after her death. The proposal still requires approval from the Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority, which is expected to consider the name change at its September 17 meeting.
The petition behind it was not new. Fans started the online petition calling for officials to rename Nashville International Airport in her honor back in January 2025. The petition gained new momentum following Parton's death, soaring past 150,000 signatures this week. Supporters even flew a banner over downtown Nashville on Friday promoting the campaign.
There is a bureaucratic wrinkle. Putting Parton's name on the Nashville airport could require its governing authority to revisit its policy, which states airport properties should only be named for people who have been dead for at least two years - and the change would make Parton the first woman whose name adorns one of America's 50 busiest airports. That's not a small thing. One rule tweak and history gets made.
Gov. Lee said, "Dolly Parton's extraordinary life is forever woven into the fabric of our state. From her rural mountain home in East Tennessee to global stages, Dolly carried the Volunteer Spirit with her."
DOLLYFEST is coming - on two continents
The estate didn't stop there. Parton's Estate revealed on August 31 that DOLLYFEST will take place in Nashville and London across two consecutive weekends in 2027, transforming what was originally planned as a January 2026 Nashville event into what the Estate describes as a "double-day, double-weekend, double-continent" celebration. The original festival was intended to feature Parton as both performer and host before her health challenges forced her to step back.
"What Dolly started, we will ensure is brought to life," said her manager Danny Nozell, founder/CEO of CTK Enterprises. No lineup has been announced yet, but given the scope of the tributes - Kacey Musgraves playing an emotional set in Boston, Ariana Grande honoring Parton at a London concert stop - the 2027 bill is going to be long.
The numbers behind a 60-year run
Over a career spanning more than six decades, Parton earned acclaim as a singer, songwriter, actress, entrepreneur, and philanthropist. As a songwriter, she created some of the most enduring songs in modern music, including "Jolene," "I Will Always Love You," "9 to 5," and "Coat of Many Colors." Her recordings sold more than 100 million copies worldwide.
Parton built the Dollywood theme park into a Tennessee institution and launched the Imagination Library, which has helped put hundreds of millions of books into the hands of children. Tributes have already included donating profits to her Imagination Library and honoring her legacy on September 25, being called "Dolly Day."
Her collaboration with Beyoncé, "Tyrant," from Bey's Grammy-winning 2024 album Cowboy Carter, jumped from 47.8K streams to 534.7K on the day of her death alone. A 10x spike on a two-year-old collab track. That's how wide her reach actually ran.
The September 17 airport vote is the next date to watch. If the Metro Nashville Airport Authority signs off, travelers flying into Music City will land at Dolly Parton International Airport before the end of the year.
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CAN I KICK IT? screens New Jack City at the Sylvan Theater, Washington Monument, on Aug. 22. (Courtesy SHAOLIN JAZZ)
The live-cinema series CAN I KICK IT? returns to the National Mall this month with what its producers are calling the "Gangsters on the Mall" chapter of their free outdoor summer run. On Saturday, August 22, the SHAOLIN JAZZ production brings the 1991 crime classic New Jack City to the Sylvan Theater at the Washington Monument for a night of film, music, and community under the DC summer sky.
What sets the event apart is the sound. As the film plays, DJ 2-Tone Jones builds an original score in real time, reimagining one of the most iconic crime movies of the ’90s through hip-hop, soul, funk, and more. It is less a movie screening than a live performance built around the film.
The details:
Film: New Jack City (1991), with a live soundtrack by DJ 2-Tone Jones
When: Saturday, August 22 — seating opens at 7:30 p.m. (bring lawn chairs and blankets); film begins at 8:30 p.m.
Where: Sylvan Theater at the Washington Monument, Independence Ave SW & 15th St NW
A parking note from the organizers: expect road closures and restricted parking east of 14th Street NW due to a separate race event in the District. Roads west of 14th Street NW will be accessible and available for parking.
New Jack City is the second of three screenings in this year’s free CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series, which opened with Black Panther at Skyland Town Center and concludes with Scarface at the Lincoln Memorial on September 5. Produced by the Washington, DC-based multimedia arts company SHAOLIN JAZZ, the series has presented more than 150 live cinematic experiences at venues across the country, from Lincoln Center to SXSW.
"I wanted to be able to tell good stories with substance and remove the ‘ego’ out of the art," said Andrew Huang during a recent interview. Now, he’s building his career at the intersection of discipline, creativity and innovation.
Andrew Huang, founder of New Place Studios. (Courtesy photo)
As a Chinese American, Huang was reared with a deep respect for hard work, consistency and excellence. He describes his childhood as "not so affluent" and later attended college to hone his passion for videography. "In college I tried to do something I loved, which was video, but along the way I knew that I had to find a job. And so I thought, ‘what was the low hanging fruit to get to that stable 9 to 5 job?,’" he stated.
Later in life, Huang found himself working for corporations where his creativity was often limited, eventually leading to burnout. "I worked in a corporation for a long time and there were a lot of missing pieces. I wanted to fill in gaps missing in corporate video production," said Huang.
He later described how his upbringing and a mindset of "survival" led him toward a corporate career. However, his desire for balance and authentic storytelling ultimately pushed him to take the entrepreneurial leap.
"I founded a new place where you can create video and film with ‘substance and style,’" said Huang. His desire for work-life balance and passion for storytelling naturally evolved into a small business based in Virginia. With the launch of New Place Studios, the entrepreneur quickly found himself reconnecting with the values that would become the foundation of everything he creates behind the camera.
Huang said being a business owner has allowed him to first embrace himself. While others may see video as simply capturing moments, he sees it as a way to preserve stories that inspire, connect and leave a lasting imprint.
By combining cinematic visuals with cutting-edge production techniques and a keen understanding of branding, Huang helps organizations and individuals communicate their vision with purpose. He said understanding a client’s "why" serves as the compass for delivering the services they need.
One benefit of working with a small business, he said, is that clients get to see the production process unfold through a micro lens while working with the same faces throughout the entire project. "The work feels personal," said Huang.
Huang does not regret leaving behind the flash-over-substance mentality and corporate hustle culture. That does not mean the Asian American entrepreneur has been without challenges in the industry. "It’s relatively hard to find other Asian American creatives or people who would want to work with me in the DMV," said Huang.
He identifies the industry culture in which everyone is trying to blend in, creatives may fear displaying their Asian identity and some feel pressure to adopt an American corporate persona. He also points to what he describes as a level of gatekeeping within the industry. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration’s 2024 statistics, Asian American and Pacific Islander entrepreneurs own more than 3 million businesses and employ 5.2 million people in the United States.
After tapping into organizations such as SCORE, which offers free small business mentorship, New Place Studios has become a trusted creative partner throughout the DMV (Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia). The company produces a range of creative services, including commercials, corporate branding, documentaries, film, 2D animation, motion graphics and photography.
For Huang, entrepreneurship has become more than a departure from corporate life. It has given him the freedom to create with intention, build meaningful connections and tell stories that go beyond the surface.
The 2026 CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series. Poster courtesy of SHAOLIN JAZZ.
For three Saturdays this summer, some of Washington’s most familiar public spaces will do something they rarely do after dark: fill up with blankets, lawn chairs, and the sound of a movie being scored live, in real time. CAN I KICK IT?, the traveling “live cinema” series produced by the DC-based multimedia arts company SHAOLIN JAZZ, is bringing a free outdoor run to the city — pairing three era-defining films with an original soundtrack performed on the spot by DJ 2-Tone Jones.
The premise is what sets it apart from a normal screening in the park. Rather than simply pressing play, 2-Tone Jones builds a score as the film unfolds, pulling from hip-hop, soul, funk, jazz, rock, electronic music, and sounds from around the world. The result, the organizers say, is less a movie night than a one-time performance — the same film you know, wired to a soundtrack you have never heard and will not hear again. Guest DJs warm up the crowd starting at 7:30 PM before each 8:30 PM screening.
The 2026 outdoor schedule
All three events are free and open to the public.
Saturday, August 8 — Black Panther at Skyland Town Center. A pop-up marketplace and community activities kick off the evening; guest DJs at 7:30 PM, film at 8:30 PM. Marvel’s superhero epic gets a one-night-only live score in Southeast DC.
Saturday, August 22 — New Jack City at the Sylvan Theater, Washington Monument. Seating begins at 7:30 PM; the film starts at 8:30 PM. The 1991 crime drama plays out at the foot of one of the country’s most recognizable landmarks.
Saturday, September 5 — Scarface at the Lincoln Memorial. Seating at 7:30 PM; film at 8:30 PM. The series closes with Brian De Palma’s crime saga against the backdrop of the Memorial, scored live from start to finish.
First up: Black Panther at Skyland Town Center on August 8. Poster courtesy of SHAOLIN JAZZ.
A DC company with a national footprint
SHAOLIN JAZZ describes itself as a Washington-based arts company working at the intersection of music, film, art, and culture, and CAN I KICK IT? is its signature production. According to the organizers, the series has staged more than 150 live cinematic experiences around the country — at performing arts centers, museums, festivals, and cultural institutions including Lincoln Center in New York, SXSW, the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, Republic Square in Austin, the Tacoma Armory, and The Cary Theater.
“CAN I KICK IT? has always been about creating a shared experience,” said Gerald Watson, co-founder of SHAOLIN JAZZ. “When you combine iconic films with live music in public spaces, something special happens. People aren’t just watching a movie — they’re experiencing it together. That’s what makes these nights so memorable.”
Cinema as a community event
The DC run lands as cities across the country look for new ways to activate public space through arts and culture — and this series is a straightforward pitch for how to do it: take a landmark everyone already knows, add a film everyone has an opinion about, and let a live soundtrack turn the evening into something neighbors experience shoulder to shoulder. Families, film buffs, and music fans are all invited, and admission won’t cost a thing.
The CAN I KICK IT? outdoor series runs August 8, August 22, and September 5. All events are free; check SHAOLIN JAZZ (shaolinjazz.com) for the latest details and any weather updates before heading out.
