Dolly Parton died Aug. 25, 2026, at 80, after a brief battle with cancer. Nashville is responding the only way it knows how — with 20 performers, two special guests, a university student ensemble, and two hours of live television. “CMA Presents I Will Always Love You: A Celebration of Dolly Parton” airs Wednesday, Oct. 21, 9–11 p.m. ET on ABC and Disney+, live from the Fisher Center for the Performing Arts at Belmont University. Proceeds benefit Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library, which has distributed nearly 308 million books to children since 1995, according to ABC News.
The Full Performer List
Twenty confirmed performers span the full range of Parton’s musical world — and then some.
Twenty principal performers are confirmed for the broadcast, spanning distinct musical worlds that rarely share the same stage.
- Ashley McBryde
- Béla Fleck
- Brad Paisley
- Carly Pearce
- Carrie Underwood
- Darius Rucker
- Ella Langley
- Kelsea Ballerini
- Kristen Bell
- Kristin Chenoweth
- Lady A
- Lainey Wilson
- Little Big Town
- Lukas Nelson
- Molly Tuttle
- Reba McEntire
- Ricky Skaggs
- Sierra Hull
- Vince Gill
- Zac Brown
Special guests: Amy Grant and Kimberly Williams-Paisley.
Additional participant: A Belmont University student ensemble connected to the school’s “Dolly U” programming.
A Lineup That Actually Reflects the Work
The roster reads less like a booking sheet and more like a map of everywhere Parton’s music actually traveled.
Contemporary country — Underwood, Langley, Wilson. Veteran Nashville — McEntire, Gill, Skaggs. Bluegrass and roots — Fleck, Tuttle, Hull. All on one stage, announced together by the CMA on Oct. 5, 2026. The inclusion of crossover figures Kristen Bell and Kristin Chenoweth extends the tribute well past country’s usual borders, reflecting how consistently Parton moved between genres, audiences, and cultural spaces without losing her footing in any of them. That restless range also made her catalog a goldmine for cover songs that generations of artists claimed as their own.
The Belmont University student ensemble is the sharpest detail in the whole production. Her legacy doesn’t just get honored here — it gets handed forward to the next generation of Nashville musicians through the university’s own Parton-connected programming.
How to Watch the Tribute
Everything you need to catch the broadcast live or on demand.
Tune in Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2026, 9–11 p.m. ET. The concert broadcasts live on ABC and streams simultaneously on Disney+. Miss it live? Hulu carries it the next day. The venue is the Fisher Center for the Performing Arts at Belmont University in Nashville.
The tribute extends beyond the broadcast itself. Proceeds flow directly to Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library — the book-gifting program she founded in 1995 that has placed nearly 308 million books in children’s hands, per ABC News. That program runs whether the cameras are rolling or not. A concert can honor a legacy for two hours. A literacy initiative built to outlast its founder honors it indefinitely. Both are happening on Oct. 21. One just ends at 11 p.m. ET.
