Dolly Parton Drops a New Song to Celebrate Turning 77

The country music star released ‘Don’t Make Me Have to Come Down There’ on Jan. 19.
Dolly Parton.

Dolly Parton.


Dolly Parton is the gift that keeps on giving. Even on her own 77th birthday, the country music star was in the mood to treat fans to a brand new song. She released “Don’t Make Me Have to Come Down There” on Jan. 19 to celebrate another year of life and broke the exciting news in an Instagram post.

“Happy birthday to me, happy birthday to me! 🎶 Today, I decided I’m not gonna get, I’m gonna give,” she captioned the video. Parton mentioned that the idea for the song came to her in a dream.

In the clip, she wore a black turtleneck with metallic detailing, a chunky sparkly gold belt and dangly statement earrings.

“I felt like it was worth putting out there—something special was special to me,” the “Jolene” singer explained. “I had a dream about God standing on a mountain, looking down on us saying, ‘Don’t make me have to come down there.’ And then it woke me up. I got up. I started writing this song and over a period of weeks and months, I finished it as things would come to me. I just felt like I should drop it on my birthday. So I hope you enjoy it.”

Parton has a new album on the horizon. It’s unclear if her latest single will be on the upcoming Rock Star, which she revealed will feature Paul McCartney, Stevie Nicks, John Fogerty, Pink and Brandi Carlile.

“I really think it’s some of the best work I’ve ever done,” she said on the Today Show“I think so. Only because it’s different for me. I wanted it to be good.” 

This will be Parton’s first album outside of the country genre and the decision to change things up came after she was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, despite initially gracefully declining the invitation.

“I never thought of myself as a rock star,” she admitted. “I found out later that they give it to you if you’ve influenced other people. But I had said at the start I didn’t want to accept it because I didn’t think I’d earned it. I’m gonna go ahead and do a rock album and just make the most of it.”

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Ananya Panchal
ANANYA PANCHAL

Ananya Panchal is a writer on the Lifestyle and Trending News team for SI Swimsuit, where she covers fashion, beauty, pop culture and the internet’s favorite personalities and trends. She joined the brand in 2022 after roles at Bustle, the San Francisco Chronicle and the TODAY Show. Panchal loves to write about fashion in all its forms—from standout runway moments and evolving street style to the best accessories to elevate each season’s wardrobe (she rarely goes anywhere without a stack of jewelry and a coffee in hand). A self-proclaimed beauty fanatic, she’s always on the hunt for must-have products and loves breaking down viral trends. Her favorite series at the moment is spotlighting female founders and the stories behind the brands they’ve built—especially those shaping the future of fashion, wellness and tech. She is based between New York City and San Francisco and, when she’s not writing, can be found rewatching One Tree Hill, playing sudoku, trying new restaurants or ranking her favorite Disney Channel Original Movies. She holds a bachelor’s degree in communications and journalism with a minor in criminal justice from Boston University.