Despite the backlash Elle King has received for her ‘slurring’ performance at a show celebrating Dolly Parton’s 78th birthday, insiders have revealed the country music icon would still be happy to take the stage with the singer.
King, 34, caused a furor among fans at the Grand Ole Opry on Friday when she appeared ‘hammered’ during a performance at Nashville’s Grand Ole Opry in Ryman Auditorium – leading to an apology from the venue.
The singer, who is the daughter of Rob Schneider, was seen slurring her words and saying the F-word multiple times during the set, before admitting on stage she was ‘hammered.’
Though fans were left furious by the display, a source revealed to DailyMail.com that Parton had no intention of saying anything negative about the hitmaker.
‘Dolly in no way is going to bash Elle for her performance at the Opry, that is not Dolly’s style and that will not be Dolly’s intention to take down another artist, especially a fellow female artist,’ the insider explained.
Insiders have revealed that country music icon Dolly Parton has no intention of saying anything negative about singer Elle King following the outrage she caused on Friday night
The singer caused quite the furor among fans at the Grand Ole Opry when she appeared ‘hammered’ during a performance at a celebration for Dolly Parton’s 78th birthday
They continued: ‘Dolly doesn’t begin to know what Elle might be going through, if it was just one bad night or something more, but Dolly will not drag Elle in any way, Dolly isn’t going to tear her down.
‘This might actually end up leading to something positive and special down the line where they perform together.’
The source added that Parton would likely try and take the opportunity to uplift the singer as they added: ‘Dolly is all about building people up and this unfortunate incident is just that, a bump in the road.
‘Dolly is going to see it through and expect the best and if she ever talks or sees or performs with Elle in the future, it will all be positive because that is where Dolly’s mindset is at all the time.’
DailyMail.com has contacted Parton and King’s representatives for comment on the matter.
King has not publicly addressed the incident either in a statement or through social media quite yet.
However, an apology was shared on the Opry’s official account which read: ‘We deeply regret and apologize for the language that was used during last night’s second Opry performance.’
The apology was attached to a tweet from an upset fan, who wrote, ‘Elle King ruined the night with her horrible, drunk, and profane performance. Dolly Parton would’ve been mortified. For our first time at the Opry, it was a shame we all had to witness that… It was such a disappointment to spend $300 on tickets for a show where one of the artists ruined an entire night.’
The country legend herself wasn’t in attendance when the 34-year-old singer and daughter of Rob Schneider performed at Nashville’s Grand Ole Opry in Ryman Auditorium
King was seen slurring her words and saying the F-word multiple times during the set, before admitting on stage she was ‘hammered’
A source told DailyMail.com that Dolly would still be happy to take the stage with the singer
A TikTok video from @auctioneergirl showed King performing Parton’s 2001 song Marry Me, when she seemed to forget the lyrics.
Instead, she sung, ‘I don’t know the lyrics to these things in this f***ing town… Don’t tell Dolly ’cause it’s her birthday.’
She then started seemingly antagonizing the fans, saying, ‘You spent money for this s**t?’
After a fan started yelling at her, King openly declared she was drunk on stage, which didn’t sit well with fans.
‘You ain’t getting your money back. I’ll tell you one thing more: “Hi, my name is Elle King [and] I’m f***ing hammered,”‘ she said on stage.
One of her band mates suggested they play one of her songs, as King responded, ‘I can barely play another person’s song, let me see if I can play one of mine.’
The Opry Goes Dolly show also featured Ashley Monroe, Tigirlily Gold, Dailey & Vincent and Terri Clark, with fans blasting King on social media.
‘Elle King disrespected the Ryman and Dolly Parton,’ a TikTok user added on the social media platform.
King has not addressed that performance, but she admitted that she likes to enjoy a drink before going onstage – pictured here drinking on stage in January last year
King and her actor father, Rob Schneider, pictured together in 2009
King has previously spoken candidly about her attitude to drinking, insisting at the time that she can control it.
‘I really like to drink and sing. I don’t want to get as drunk as I used to,’ King said in a 2022 interview.
‘It’s easier for me to say: “Yeah, I want to drink and party and [then] go on stage.” I get nervous before I go on stage, [so] I have couple of drinks [first],’ she said.
‘Drinking makes me less nervous about hitting the notes when I sing. If I don’t make them, it won’t sting as much,’ she clarified.
King released her first single – Good to Be a Man – in 2012, with her first album, The Elle King LP, released that year, as she was named an Artist to Watch by Esquire.
The hitmaker started her career as a rock artist thanks to her breakthrough 2014 hit Ex’s and Oh’s, before she fully switched to country music with her third album, 2023’s Come Get Your Wife.
