Royal Central - Prince Ricardo De La Cerda
By Curtis Hilbun – http://www.mynewsdesk.com/se/pressroom/liseberg/image/view/dolly-parton-mottagare-av-liseberg-applause-award-58054, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Country music star Dolly Parton has revealed she once turned down an invitation from the Princess of Wales.
The beloved 77-year-old said Catherine invited her for tea while she was in London for work; however, Dolly declined.
In true Dolly fashion, the star hilariously explained her reasoning on BBC 2: “This time, Lordy, I even got invited to have tea with Kate, but I couldn’t even go.
“I thought it was very sweet and nice of her to invite me, and one of these days I’m going to get to do that – that would be great.”
She then joked, “But she wasn’t going to promote my rock album, so I had to say no.”
Dolly also had praise for London, saying she loves “the people and the feel of London. I don’t, unfortunately [get time to sightsee]. I have in the past, me and my band, in a tour bus when we have it planned.”
Parton is well-known for treating her band like family, which also extends to their family.
Dolly Parton, considered like royalty back home in Tennessee, came from humble roots in the Smoky Mountains. She was born in a one-room cabin as the fourth of twelve children. She grew up poor but vowed at her high school graduation that she was going to Nashville to become a country music star.
She did just that and has become one of the most popular singers in country music. She never forgot her East Tennessee roots and is responsible for the tourism boom that took place in her home of Sevierville (right outside Knoxville) and Sevier County as a whole. Dollywood itself has an indirect economic impact of $1.8 billion, according to the University of Tennessee. She created the Imagination Library, where all children in Tennessee get a free book each month from the month they are born until they start school.