- - Dolly Parton Turns 80 And Releases A New Take On A Classic—For A Cause Close To Her Heart

Melissa LockerJanuary 17, 2026 at 2:21 AM

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Theo Wargo/Getty Images for The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

It’s Dolly Parton’s birthday, but she is giving her gift to the world. The country icon is turning 80 on January 19 and to mark the momentous occasion, she has shared a new version of her classic song “Light of a Clear Blue Morning.”

The new take on the hit features Parton dueting with Lainey Wilson, her goddaughter Miley Cyrus, Queen Latifah, and Reba McEntire. "You know, we're living in troubled and uncertain times," Parton intones as the song begins. "But we can't let the darkness win," she adds. "We can't give up, 'cause I can see the light of a clear blue morning."

It's a hopeful message for a new year, which is exactly what Parton wanted to share with the world and anyone struggling right now. “I wrote ‘Light of a Clear Blue Morning’ during a season when I was searching for hope, and fifty years later that message still feels just as true,” Parton shared in a statement. “As I celebrate my 80th birthday, this new version is my way of using what I’ve been blessed with to shine a little light forward, especially by sharing it with some truly incredible women.”

The beloved icon has a long history of philanthropy, including her incredible Imagination Library program that gifts children around the country with books. So it is no surprise that she is continuing the tradition by giving the net proceeds of this song and its accompanying music video to benefit the pediatric cancer research program at Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt in Nashville, Tennessee, a program that is close to her heart and a longtime recipient of her generosity.

Watch the video for the song here:

Happy birthday, Dolly Parton!

on Southern Living

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”