Dolly Parton performed in front of her largest audience ever over the weekend. She played for an estimated 150,000 at Britain’s Glastonbury festival.
Think of Glastonbury as the Bonnaroo of the UK. It’s known for attracting rock acts, but the Sunday afternoon crowd was ecstatic as the 67-year-old Parton broke into one of her best-known songs.
Parton says she’s wanted to play Glastonbury her whole life. Speaking with the BBC after her performance, she says the timing was right this year. She’s in the middle of a world tour in support of her latest album.
I can’t believe I’ve never done this before, but it never has worked out to where we were in this part of the country during the time you were doing the festival. I’ve done several shows before, but nothing they tell me that’s this big.
It was a mostly sunny day for her performance, but Parton says she wrote a song about mud especially for the outdoor festival, which takes place about 120 miles west of London. Two other acts with Nashville ties-The Black Keys and Jack White-also played at Glastonbury this year.