Kacey Musgraves delivered an emotional salute to Dolly Parton at the 2026 MTV VMAs on Sunday, Sept. 27, performing a piano-backed rendition of “I Will Always Love You” in honor of the late country music legend.
The tribute opened with an older video of Parton offering encouraging words and singing a brief portion of the song. The camera then turned to Musgraves, who wore a reddish-pink gown with feathered cuffs for the performance.
Musgraves kept the musical arrangement and staging restrained. She sang in front of a simple white sheer curtain as glittering butterfly images appeared in the background, incorporating an element associated with Parton’s signature branding.
Parton’s presence also closed the tribute. A final video showed her smiling and waving before giving her familiar dulcet laugh and saying, “I will always love you.”
VMAs host Snoop Dogg praised Musgraves immediately afterward.
“Now, that’s how you honor a legend,” he said. “We love you, Dolly. If you love Dolly Parton, make some noise!”
A Song With a Decades-Long History
“I Will Always Love You” has a recording history spanning several decades. Parton released the song as a solo performance in 1974 and later recorded a duet version with Vince Gill in 1995.
Whitney Houston also performed a cover for the soundtrack to The Bodyguard. Her rendition became a worldwide success after its 1992 release, remaining at No. 1 on the all-genre Hot 100 chart for 14 weeks.
By selecting the song for the VMAs tribute, Musgraves centered the performance on one of the most celebrated pieces associated with Parton while allowing archival footage to frame the moment in Parton’s own voice.
The Tribute Followed Dolly Day Commemorations
Parton died Aug. 25 at age 80 following a private battle with cancer. Musgraves’ VMAs appearance came shortly after cities around the country honored the singer with Dolly Day on Sept. 25, a date also represented as 9/25.
Nashville marked the occasion with a series of pink-themed tributes. Some crosswalks were painted pink, and several city landmarks were illuminated in the color. Honky-tonks across the city played Parton’s “9 to 5” at precisely 5 p.m.
The Nashville commemorations continued later that evening with pink-hued fireworks celebrating the country superstar. Two days later, the VMAs tribute placed Musgraves alone at the piano-backed center of another remembrance, with Parton’s recorded words and unmistakable laugh bookending the performance.