Dolly-Parton

Born on Jan. 19th, 1946 in Locust Ridge Tenn into a poor family that would eventually comprise 12 kids Dolly Parton learned early to overcome the challenges of her life through her vivid and far-ranging imagination. Her songs were written before she was able to write or read. The first time she picked up a guitar was at age 8 and started singing at the Knoxville Tenn radio station at age 11. That same year, she released her debut album for Gold Band Records an independent small label. While in high school, she made herself known to the community, but her goals were bigger. She moved to Nashville shortly after her graduation in 1964. The first charting record she had for Monument Records included Dumb Blonde and Something Fishy both in 1967. Porter Wagoner, a syndicated TV show host in the late '60s, was looking for a girl to sing for his program. Parton got her first gig in the year 1967, signed with RCA Records by 1968, she joined the Grand Ole Opry. In 1974, she resigned from The Wagoner's Show due to the popularity of her singles like Joshua Coats from Many Colors or Jolene was surpassing their joint albums. Parton wrote "I Will Always Love You" to Wagoner just after the pair split. The song hit No. 1. for the first time in 1974.