Elle King continues to face backlash from concert-goers and fans over her controversial Dolly Parton tribute performance at Ryman Auditorium.
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Parton recently celebrated her 78th birthday, and the Grand Ole Opry honored her with a concert, which King performed at. While birthdays may be a time for celebrating, King riled fans up by getting admittedly hammered. Now, video has surfaced of King attempting to sing Parton’s “Marry Me.”
King struggled to keep up with the lyrics for the classic, complaining mid-song. She said, “This is fast. This s*** is f**king fast. How’d Dolly sing this s***?” Finally, an exasperated King told the crowd, “Everybody’s looking at me like I know this s***.”
Everyone did expect King to know it because it was Parton’s song at a tribute concert to the legend. King’s antics may have worked at any other concert, but for one honoring one of country music’s biggest names, it left a sour taste in many’s mouths.
Elle King Garners Backlash for Dolly Parton Tribute
At one point, King told crowd-goers they “was not getting their money back.” She also said, “Hi, my name is Elle King, I’m f*cking hammered.”
It was enough for the Grand Ole Opry to issue an apology to one fan on social media. They said, “We deeply regret and apologize for the language that was used during last night’s second Opry performance.”
Even Parton’s sister Stella blasted the singer publicly.
“I didn’t see nor hear the Grand Ole Opry birthday tribute to my big sister Dolly over the weekend,” she began. “But some lil girl by the name of Elle King apparently cussed and insulted some of Dolly’s fans by not knowing a song. She did admit to being ‘hammered.’ Her word, not mine,” she added.
While pointing out that critics were perhaps a little too heated about King’s apparent drinking, Stella criticized King for not being able to get her sister’s songs right. She found it disrespectful to Parton and all of her accomplishments.
“To any lil ego thinking they can learn the lyrics correctly with a half-a**ed listen to one of Dolly’s songs, surprise! You’ll end up looking as silly as that lil girl,” she wrote. “Do your homework people. Memorize the lyrics to ‘Jolene’ or [‘Coat of Many Colors’]. My sister loves words. A brilliant wordsmith,” she added.
[Photo by David Crotty/Getty Images for Estee Lauder]
