With her small stature, big voice, and blonde hair, Sabrina Carpenter has drawn comparisons to Dolly Parton. Those similarities became even more prevalent when the bombshell pair teamed up to give Carpenter’s 2024 hit “Please, Please, Please” a twangy makeover in February. However, the delightful remix also highlighted some key differences between Dolly, 79, and Carpenter, 25. And the “Queen of Country” had to set some clear boundaries before she agreed to lend her vocals.
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Dolly Parton Had One Condition For Sabrina Carpenter
Much like Dolly Parton, Sabrina Carpenter manages to subvert traditional femininity while outwardly adhering to its tropes. Unlike Dolly, the “Espresso” songstress relies more on “colorful” language and not-so-subtle innuendo. (Give “Bed Chem” a listen if you don’t believe me.
So when Carpenter approached the “Jolene” legend about collaborating for the deluxe Short n’ Sweet edition’s version of “Please, Please, Please,” Dolly enthusiastically agreed—with one condition.
“Of course, she can talk a little bad now and then,” the former Entertainer of the Year said in an interview this week with Knox News. “I told her, I said, now, I don’t cuss, I don’t make fun of Jesus. I don’t talk bad about God, and I don’t say dirty words, on camera, but known to if I get mad enough.”
[RELATED: 3 Classic Dolly Parton Songs We’d Give Anything To Hear Sabrina Carpenter Cover]
That stipulation likely prompted a major lyric change in the remix’s chorus. Instead of Heartbreak is one thing, my ego’s another / I beg you, don’t embarrass me mother f—er, the pair sing, Heartbreak is one thing, my ego’s another / I beg you, don’t embarrass me like the others.
When announcing the collab on social media, Carpenter cheekily wrote, “and yes that does say featuring Miss Dolly Parton…. she wouldn’t want me to swear but holy s—!!!!!”
Dolly Is Enjoying Her Creative Freedom
In addition to the Sabrina Carpenter collab, Dolly Parton has also recently teamed up with contemporaries like Beyoncé and Miley Cyrus. “I’m just having fun with all of it,” the “Coat of Many Colors” singer told Knox News.
And after decades of paying her dues and building her legacy, Dolly is ready for some more fun. ‘I don’t have to worry about a record label saying, ‘No, you can’t do that,’ because I own my own music, I own my own label,” she said. “So, I’m pretty independent. I can do what I please.”
Continuing, she said, “I love being able to have that freedom. I think freedom is a great word for everybody, anybody, in anything you do. Just having the freedom to work and the freedom to express yourself the way you want to. To do what you want to, go where you want to.”
Featured image by Weiss Eubanks/NBCUniversal via Getty Images
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