Growing up in a family of 12 siblings, a little rivalry is inevitable along with drama and jostling for position – especially when your sister happens to be one of the world’s biggest music stars.
And the intriguing family dynamic in Dolly Parton’s clan was thrown into the limelight again this week after her sister Freida apologised for alarming fans over the state of the singer’s health.
Taking to social media, she said was ‘praying’ for Dolly, who recently cancelled her Vegas residency, prompting fears that the star was in worse shape than fans initially thought.
The country singer’s UK manager Olly Rowland has since confirmed that Dolly is suffering from kidney stones and explained Freida’s statement had blown things ‘out of proportion’. Freida has also now apologised, saying she ‘didn’t mean to scare anyone or make it sound so serious’.
Yet, her concern for her older sibling is understandable given their close bond forged at their home in the Great Smoky Mountains of East Tennessee where they slept on beds made of straw, with no running water, gas or electricity.
Dolly and her siblings – Willadeene, David Wilburn, Coy Denver, Bobby Lee, Stella Mae, Cassie Nan, Randel Huston ‘Randy,’ Larry Gerald, twins Estel Floyd and Freida Estelle, and Rachel Ann – bonded over a shared love of folklore and ballads while growing up, but their bond ran deeper than a shared love of music.
Their mother Avie Lee often struggled with her mental health and their father Robert Lee Parton was a drinker, meaning Dolly and her siblings Stella and ‘second mother’ Willadeene were forced to parent the younger ones.
As was tpyical among poor Appalachian communities, which failed to feel the benefits of the post-war economic boom, they were scratching a living from the land and when Avie went into labour, her husband had to give the local doctor a bag of grain to persuade him to deliver her.
But when Dolly was launched to fame on The Porter Wagoner Show in 1967, her relationship with her siblings – notably fellow singer Stella – suffered as a result.
Dolly Parton (R) and her sister Freida (R) appear to still have a close relationship, but that cannot be said of all the sisters after the 9 to 5 hitmaker’s success seriously impacted her relationship with her younger sister Stella (middle)
Frieda demonstrated her intense love for her sister on Tuesday night after she raised alarm telling fans she was ‘praying’ for her sister amid her mystery health scare
Three year’s younger than Dolly, Stella also pursued a career in music and released 36 albums.
However her relationship with Dolly was strained after she recalled being pushed to the sidelines amid Dolly’s success.
Writing in her 2011 memoir Tell It Sister, Tell It: Memories, Music and Miracles, Stella penned: ‘In my own mind I remain a little mountain girl sitting in the front yard with my big sister Dolly, making up songs.
‘One of my earliest memories is of Dolly’s impatience with me because I couldn’t come up with a satisfactory line in one of these early collaborations. I think I was always a pain in her neck.
‘All I wanted was to be included in what she was doing. All she wanted was for me to get lost.’
Raised in a house of 14, Dolly’s upbringing was anything but ordinary prior to her rise to fame as one of eleven sibling (pictured together)
The country singer’s UK manager Olly Rowland has now confirmed the star is suffering from kidney stones and explained Freida’s statement had blown things ‘out of proportion’
Stella’s relationship with Dolly was strained after she recalled being pushed to the sidelines amid her success and was even told by their uncle to stay out the music industry all together (Stella, Freida and Dolly pictured in 1981)
While Dolly rose to mega-stardom and multi-million dollar record deals Stella struggled to achieve her own profession in county music.
‘Either I can allow it [having a famous sister] to be a curse or I can find the blessing in it,’ she writes.
‘Yes, doors have been slammed in my face and there are those who resent me today because they think: “How dare she try and have a career with Dolly being so successful – I bet she gets handouts all the time – I bet Dolly does everything for her.”‘
In the early years of their careers Stella recalls an insulting incident when their uncle, who was helping to manage Dolly, tried to force her out of the music industry all together.
‘I remember it as if it was yesterday,’ writes Stella who was raising a baby as a single mother at the time.
‘He said: “You need to take that kid of yours and go back home and work in the beauty shop where you belong”.’
The uncle had decided that it would ‘hurt Dolly’s music career’ if Stella was in the music business too.
Meanwhile Dolly spoke up and said: ‘Well Stella, if you are going to sing then you need to change your name,’ says the book.
Stella was ‘heartbroken’ by the knockback but she persisted regardless – she went on to release 31 chart singles and tour internationally.
She adds: ‘People don’t really know my story. If you knew you’d be surprised not jealous. There are so many awkward situations to manoeuvre because of my relationship with my sister.
‘People think I should be able to cut right to the front of the line because Dolly has been at the top of her game so long.’
Her feelings of ‘exclusion’ from Dolly in her younger years have left a mark: ‘Dolly found every reason in the world to keep me as far away as possible and over the years I finally gave up and let her have it.
Stella’s twenties were also marred by abusive relationships and she survived a brutal attempted rape by a Tennessee official when she was 24.
‘He slapped me so hard he broke my nose,’ Stella recounted of the attack.
‘You can still see the scar on my face today – where the bone popped through the flesh.’
Dolly enjoys the closest relationship of all with her youngest sister Rachel, 65, who was born on August 31, 1959 (Pictured in 2014)
The two have become even closer in recent years, spending more time together after releasing a cookbook, Good Lookin’ Cookin’: A Year Of Meals in December, including 80 family recipes
Meanwhioel, Frieda has opted for a drastically different career to that of her siblings, becoming an ordained minister after her early pursuits of being in a punk band, and a back-up singer on some of Dolly’s albums.
Frieda’s daughter Andersen told Knox News previously about her close bond with her older sister, saying: ‘My mom’s a songwriter, and I grew up with someone who was always writing and feeling and putting it out on paper and teaching me how to play guitar.
‘And she was so influential in that, and she was so influenced by her big sister, so it just sort of was like this little step ladder situation.’
Yet while Dolly’s relationship with Stella had its tensions, the star had an incredibly close relationship with some of her younger siblings after playing a major part in their upbringing.
And it seems like Dolly enjoys the closest relationship of all with her youngest sister Rachel, 66, who was born on August 31, 1959.
Rachel moved in with her big sister aged just 13 and dropped out of school in the eighth grade to join her on the road full time.
Rachel later became an actress in the ABC sitcom 9 to 5, based on her sister’s musical, and even married Dolly’s pianist Richard Dennison, with whom she shares a daughter, Hannah.
But prior to her acting career, Rachel was firmly by Dolly’s side as her most loyal assistant, taking on roles from anything from being her make-up artist to being her back-up singer.
The two have become even closer in recent years, spending more time together after releasing a cookbook, Good Lookin’ Cookin’: A Year Of Meals in December, including 80 family recipes.
As a result, she’s now a regular feature on Dolly’s Instagram account, posing together in several glamorous photoshoots to promote the book.
The sisters appeared to spend Christmas together this year, with Dolly writing: ‘As we’ve spent time together creating this year of meals and recipes to share with you, we’ve realized they reflect a lifetime of family, friends and food.
‘Rachel and I wish you all a very Merry Christmas Eve.’
To welcome in 2025, Dolly emphasised the importance of spending time with ‘those you love’, sharing a sweet photograph with Rachel as the played the piano together.
In April 2024, Dolly posted a throwback picture, joking: ‘My sister Rachel and I just a few years ago. And now we’re writing a cookbook together!’
In addition to Freida, Stella and Rachel, Dolly also has eight other siblings – Willadeene, David Wilburn, Coy Denver, Bobby Lee, Cassie Nan, Randel Huston ‘Randy,’ Larry Gerald and Freida’s twin Estel Floyd.
Dolly was clearly close to her father Robert (pictured) and still regularly posts tributes to him on Instagram
The siblings have also faced tragic losses, including Randy, a performer, who died of cancer in 2021 at 67
Robert and Coy, Dolly’s brothers, have largely kept out of the spotlight.
Meanwhile Cassie, born February 1951, was part of a gospel group with her siblings and appeared in Dolly’s show My People: Dolly’s Letter Home as a vocalist in 2013, according to Knox News.
But since marrying her husband Larry Seaver, and welcoming children Bryan and Rebecca, Cassie has retreated from the public eye, though she has on occasion been pictured with her famous sibling.
Dolly’s beloved brother David passed away in November last year aged 82.
David, survived by his wife of 45 years Kay, had led a private life, steering clear of the fame that defined much of his family’s legacy in entertainment.
He ‘retired from Simpson Construction as a bridge builder superintendent; and worked on many of the bridges in the Kingsport, Johnson City, and Knoxville areas,’ according to his obituary.
The youngest sibling, Larry, died shortly after birth in 1955, while Floyd, a songwriter, passed in 2018 at 61, and Randy, a performer, died of cancer in 2021 at 67.
Despite his tragically short life, Larry was the subject of Dolly’s movie Coat Of Many Colours and hit of the same name.
Dolly was just nine at the time of his death and took it hard, saying she ‘experienced a lot of heartache’.
Randy passed away in 2021 following a battle with cancer.
Like Dolly, he also had a prosperous career in music, with hits including ‘Hold Me Like You Never Had Me’ and ‘Shot Full of Love.’ He also featured in a duet with Dolly called Old Flames Can’t Hold A Candle To You – and the pair were believed to have a mutual admiration for one another.
