‘I Will Always Love You’: Dolly Parton Speaks Out Following Death Of Husband

Country legend Dolly Parton broke her silence on Thursday following the heartbreaking news on March 3 of the death of her husband of nearly 60 years, Carl Dean. He was 82.

“This is a love note to family, friends, and fans,” a post on Instagram from the 79-year-old country singer and actress began.

“Thank you for all the messages, cards, and flowers that you’ve sent to pay your respects for the loss of my beloved husband Carl,” she added. “I can’t reach out personally to each of you but just know it has meant the world to me.”

“He is in God’s arms now and I am okay with that. I will always love you,” Parton continued, a likely reference to one of her biggest hits from 1973 titled, “I Will Always Love You.”

Dolly Parton breaks her silence after husband Carl Dean’s death: ‘I will always love you’ https://t.co/UfM8BuDBTi pic.twitter.com/LBXiYxtQia

— New York Post (@nypost) March 6, 2025

The post comes days after a statement was posted on her social media account that Dean had passed away in Nashville and will be laid to rest in a private ceremony.

“Carl and I spent many wonderful years together. Words can’t do justice to the love we shared for over 60 years,” the country singer shared in a statement. “Thank you for your prayers and sympathy.”

A cause of death has not been announced.

The Tennessee businessman and Parton met the day she moved to Nashville; she was 18, and he was 21. It was outside the Wishy Washy Laundromat, the Associated Press reported.

“I was surprised and delighted that while he talked to me, he looked at my face (a rare thing for me),” Parton described of their meeting. “He seemed to be genuinely interested in finding out who I was and what I was about.”

Two years later, the two tied the knot at a small wedding in Ringgold, Georgia, on Memorial Day, May 30, 1966.

While Parton’s career took off, Dean remained mostly out of the spotlight, supporting her behind the scenes, even being the inspiration to one of her biggest hits ever, “Jolene,” per NPR.

“She got this terrible crush on my husband,” Parton said of a bank teller who seemed interested in Dean. “And he just loved going to the bank because she paid him so much attention.”

“It was kinda like a running joke between us — when I was saying, ‘Hell, you’re spending a lot of time at the bank. I don’t believe we’ve got that kind of money,’” she added. “So it’s really an innocent song all around, but sounds like a dreadful one.”

Related: Dolly Parton Shares Secret To Her 56-Year Marriage: ‘It Was Meant To Be’