Published: August 8, 2026 · 11:55 PM EDT
The country and American roots icon will be honored at the 2026 Americana Honors & Awards on September 16 at Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium
Dolly Parton will receive the Americana Music Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2026 Americana Honors & Awards.
The ceremony will take place on September 16, 2026 at Nashville’s historic Ryman Auditorium during AMERICANAFEST. According to the announcement, Parton will accept the honor via video.
The award recognizes a career that has shaped American music through songwriting, recording, artistry and creative influence across more than six decades.
The Americana Music Association is honoring Dolly Parton for the foundation of her legacy: her work as a songwriter and recording artist.
While Parton is known worldwide as an entertainer, actress, author, entrepreneur and philanthropist, the award focuses on her musical contribution to American roots music and the larger cultural landscape.
Her catalog includes songs that have moved across country, folk, bluegrass, gospel, pop and Americana traditions, reaching audiences far beyond one genre.
Jed Hilly, Executive Director of the Americana Music Association, said the organization has long admired Parton’s work as a singer, songwriter, entertainer and ambassador for music.
“We at the Americana Music Association have long admired Ms. Parton’s work as a singer, songwriter, entertainer and one of the greatest ambassadors music has ever known,” Hilly said.
He added that the honor is meant to recognize the heart of her legacy.
“With all of her extraordinary accomplishments—from philanthropy to television, film and business—our desire is to honor Dolly for what has always been at the heart of her legacy: a definitive songwriter and artist whose songs have shaped generations.”
Dolly Parton’s songwriting has become part of the American musical fabric.
Songs such as “Coat Of Many Colors,” “Jolene,” “I Will Always Love You” and “My Tennessee Mountain Home” remain central to her legacy as a writer who combined personal storytelling, Appalachian roots, emotional clarity and melodic craft.
Her songs have been covered, reinterpreted and carried forward by artists from multiple generations, making her influence visible across country music, pop, roots music and Americana.
The Americana Music Association’s Lifetime Achievement Award recognizes artists whose careers have made an enduring impact on American roots music.
Previous recipients include Buddy Guy, Emmylou Harris, Van Morrison, Bonnie Raitt and Willie Nelson.
Parton’s inclusion places her within a line of artists whose work helped define, expand or preserve the roots of American music.
The 2026 Americana Honors & Awards will be held at the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, Tennessee.
The ceremony is part of AMERICANAFEST, which celebrates artists, musicians and figures connected to the evolving landscape of American roots music.
The 2026 awards cycle also includes other Lifetime Achievement recognition, with Robert Plant announced separately as an honoree by the Americana Music Association.
Dolly Parton has spent more than six decades building one of the most recognizable and influential catalogs in American music.
Her work is rooted in Appalachian tradition but has never remained confined to one style. Across her career, she has moved through country, gospel, bluegrass, folk, pop and broader American songwriting traditions while maintaining a voice built around direct storytelling and emotional connection.
That combination makes her a natural figure for Americana recognition: an artist whose songs carry regional roots, personal memory and universal reach.
At the 2026 Americana Honors & Awards, Dolly Parton will be recognized not only as a global icon, but as one of American music’s defining songwriters. The Lifetime Achievement Award places the focus back on the songs themselves: the stories, melodies and emotional truths that made “Coat Of Many Colors,” “Jolene,” “I Will Always Love You” and many others part of the American roots music conversation across generations.
Written by Gino Alache – Music Journalist
PHOTO CREDIT: David McClister - Americana Music Association
Watch Dolly Parton’s Official video for “Eagle When She Flies” below:
