TheMix.net

Dolly Parton: How Being Branded ‘A Dumb Country Girl’ Helped My Career

Country music legend Dolly Parton strives to be an open book with her millions of fans. Most recently, the “Jolene” singer shared how being labeled “a dumb country girl” worked to her advantage in the music business during her early years.

Dolly Parton Sounds Off

“I could get in to talk with people easier because I was a girl and at that time they probably thought I was just a dumb country girl that wouldn’t know what was going on and wouldn’t suspect anything,” Parton explained.

“But I did. Because I was aware of things, because I had been all my life. I have an understanding of life and people. I can just about read what people think.”

While the Tennessee native was underestimated by the higher ups in the world of country music in her early years, she’s definitely gotten the last laugh.

Today, Dolly Parton is now known for being a shrewd businesswoman on top of being a talented performer.

The Downsides To Fame

Though Dolly has enjoyed her success, there are downsides. One of the most significant being the outside speculation about her private life.

“But now I have a lot of things told on me against my morals which are not true,” she said. “I’m no angel, but if I’d done half the things I’ve been accused of I wouldn’t be sitting here, I’d be wore out somewhere—I’d be dead.”

One of the biggest issues Dolly has faced is that whenever she’s seen with a man who isn’t Carl Dean, her husband of over 50 years, she is hit with allegations that she’s cheating on him. For a woman who has many platonic male friends, this is not an easy problem for her to have.

“Some of my very best friends are men because women—I like women cause I am one, my mother was one—but like if I have something to say, I don’t know that many women that would understand what I’m talking about businesswise or understand my ideas,” Parton explained.

“So I might want to go somewhere and eat supper with a man friend,” she added. “But I don’t very often. Cause if they see you with somebody—it has to be bad. A woman just don’t go out with a married man unless there’s something going on. It kinda irks me really to think that people are so narrow minded.”

Dolly Parton Owes Her Country Music Success To…

In the end, Dolly believes that she owes much of her success to “good common sense.”

“Well, I don’t pride myself on being all that smart, but I think I got good common sense,” she said. “It’s something born in me and something I was brought up with, and when I come to Nashville people accepted me pretty well.”

God bless Dolly Parton for entertaining all of us for so many years. There really will never be another like her!

James Conrad

James Conrad’s passion for politics is only overshadowed by his longstanding interest in Hollywood. His unique perspective as a gay conservative fuels him to challenge celebrity views and those who think they have a right to tell anyone how to think or vote. James proudly wields his minority point of view to combat identity politics and cut through his typecast. Fun fact: James’ guilty pleasure is the British royal family.