On Friday, October 20, iconic country darling Dolly Parton released a new cover of “Wrecking Ball (featuring Miley Cyrus).” The seventh promotional single for her upcoming album, Rockstar, set to arrive in November, “Wrecking Ball” interpolates the smash hit of the same name from a decade ago, sung by Parton’s goddaughter Cyrus.
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After putting out the song Friday, Parton took to Instagram to speak about the first time she heard the original “Wrecking Ball,” which peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and now sits at 9x certified platinum by RIAA. In the video she posted, Parton said “Wrecking Ball” reminded her of when she heard Whitney Houston’s now-diamond-certified 1992 rendition of “I Will Always Love You,” a song originally performed by Parton two decades prior.
“I remember the first time I heard ‘Wrecking Ball,’ it hit me the same way it did the first time I heard ‘I Will Always Love You’ by Whitney Houston,” the 77-year-old Tennessee native said in the interview-style clip uploaded to Instagram. “I was driving [when] I heard that one and I almost wrecked. And when I heard ‘Wrecking Ball,’ I almost wrecked again. When it started into that chorus I thought, ‘It hit me like a wrecking ball!’ I thought, ‘Well how great could a song be?'”
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Then, in the caption of the same post, Parton explained why she felt prompted to reprise “Wrecking Ball” for Rockstar, the country legend’s first-ever full-length rock project.
“When I heard ‘Wrecking Ball’ I almost wept in my car,” she wrote. “When it started into the chorus it hit me like a wrecking ball! I thought how great can a song be and how great can @mileycyrus be? I thought, I have to have that song on my rock album and I have to have Miley sing it with me! I love it and I hope you do! ‘Wrecking Ball (feat. Miley Cyrus)’ is OUT NOW!”
A true full-circle moment for Parton, the new version of “Wrecking Ball” not only swaps out Cyrus’ initial pop/hip-hop production for more of a rock sound, with stronger piano and live drums, but it also sees Parton throw in a lyric singing I will always love you at the end of the track.
On top of her collaboration with Cyrus, Rockstar is set to include appearances from more stars like Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Mick Fleetwood, Stevie Nicks, Sting, Sheryl Crow, Brandi Carlile, P!nk, Chris Stapleton, and more.
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