Dolly Parton is dishing on all things Christmas in the new issue of Better Homes & Gardens. Parton appears on the cover of the magazine’s first-ever digital issue (in addition to the print issue), dubbed The Holiday Issue, this December, Better Homes & Gardens revealed on Thursday (November 10). The legendary country star spoke in a Q&A with writer Jason Sheeler about her holiday traditions, her new duet with Jimmy Fallon, who’s the real “queen of Christmas” and more.
Parton reflected on holiday memories from her childhood, growing up in eastern Tennessee with her family. She remembered that, “though we didn’t have the money,” her mother “always made Christmas great,” the superstar told Sheeler.
“I always say Momma could tell you anything and make you believe it,” Parton said in the interview. “She had to make Christmas good for all of us. She didn’t have any money to do it any other way. You know, we really didn’t know we were poor. I always make a joke, ‘We didn’t know we was poor ’til some smart-a** up and told us.’ …We didn’t even have electricity for lights on the tree. We had popcorn garland. That’s one of the things I have to have today. I never got over being country.”
Since her childhood, Parton has never lost her holiday spirit. This year alone, she’s already released A Holly Dolly Christmas Deluxe and “Almost Too Early For Christmas,” a duet that the late night host announced on The Tonight Show Starring. Jimmy Fallon. She’s also gearing up for the premiere of Dolly Parton’s Mountain Magic Christmas, a star-studded holiday special — featuring Fallon, Willie Nelson, Billy Ray Cyrus, Jimmie Allen, Zach Williams and Miley Cyrus — which is set to air on NBC on Thursday, December 1 at 8 p.m. ET.
“The holidays make me very creative, ’cause I’m happy,” Parton told Better Homes & Gardens. “And I try to remember, and I draw from that, from that spirit of Christmas…the spirit is really about giving and tolerance, understanding and acceptance.”
The country star is clearly in the holiday spirit, but she refuses to accept the “queen of Christmas” title, even if some of her fans try to give her the name.
“Now, don’t you say that!” Parton exclaimed. “I’m not going to compete with Mariah (Carey). I love her. You think of Christmas, you think of Mariah. I’m happy to be second in line to her.”
The Better Homes & Gardens December 2022 issue, featuring country superstar Dolly Parton on the cover, hits newsstands on Friday (November 11). Read more here.