19 February 2021
Newsdesk
Dolly Parton has vetoed a bill to erect a statue of the country queen outside the Tennessee State Capitol in Nashville.
The Jolene singer has urged lawmakers to drop the idea because she doesn't think it's a good idea for right now.
Tennessee House of Representatives member John Mark Windle first proposed the statue plan last month, and the measure passed in the Naming & Designating Committee. It was headed to the State Government Committee for further approval when Parton herself put the brakes on the idea.
In a statement released on Thursday, Dolly thanked the lawmakers for considering the bill, revealing she was "honored and humbled by their intention".
However, she admitted: "given all that is going on in the world, I don't think putting me on a pedestal is appropriate at this time."
She went on: "I hope, though, that somewhere down the road, several years from now or perhaps after I'm gone, if you still feel I deserve it, then I'm certain I will stand proud in our great State Capitol as a grateful Tennessean," adding: "In the meantime I'll continue to try to do good work to make this great state proud."
Windle wanted to honour Dolly with a statue to mark her 75th birthday and all the singer's contributions to her home state, including the Imagination Library, theme park Dollywood, and a recent $1 million (£720,000) donation to Vanderbilt University's COVID-19 research that assisted in the development of the Moderna vaccine.
