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New York City works 9 to 5, then lights up pink for Dolly
By
Giulia Heyward
and
Phil Corso
Published Aug 25, 2026
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Giulia Heyward / Gothamist
By
Giulia Heyward
and
Phil Corso
Published Aug 25, 2026
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Dolly Parton may not have had a permanent New York address, but she was still a New York icon.
Her face adorned the walls of some of New York City’s honky-tonk spots. Her name has been featured on MetroCards. Droves of look-alikes have competed for the title of New York’s next-best Dolly. And on Tuesday, New Yorkers gathered to mourn the country music legend after her death at 80.
Photos and memorabilia of Dolly Parton cover a wall inside Lucinda’s, an East Village honky-tonk, on Tuesday.
Giulia Heyward / Gothamist
At Lucinda’s, an East Village bar with a Dolly Parton-themed bathroom lined with framed photos of the singer, manager Eddie Vidal said patrons were showing up in a mourning mood Tuesday. The bar planned to use its regularly scheduled bluegrass jam to commemorate Parton.
“I think everyone's kind of just eager to commemorate her, her music, her art,” Vidal said. “Tonight, Dolly's on the menu.”
In Greenwich Village, the IFC Center offered a simple tribute on its marquee that read, “Dolly Parton 1946-2026. IFC will always love you.”
While Parton, born in 1946 in a rural town in the Smoky Mountains, had grown virtually synonymous with Tennessee, New Yorkers still had plenty of ways to claim her as their own.
The MTA put her name on 50,000 limited-edition MetroCards in 2022, doling them out at four Midtown subway stations as a tribute to commuters "working 9 to 5." The purple cards were decorated with rhinestones, a butterfly and Parton's signature.
Mable’s Smokehouse in Williamsburg also hosted an annual Dolly Parton look-alike contest for years, attracting contestants in wigs and cowboy boots alongside fans who celebrated her personality, philanthropy and music.
For some, Parton’s appeal in New York went beyond country music. Allison Hussey, a North Carolina native who now lives in Brooklyn, visited Lucinda’s because she said she didn’t want to sit alone in her apartment thinking about Parton’s death.
Hussey said Parton’s willingness to be “so unabashedly herself” felt particularly at home in a city full of people “proudly being themselves.”
“Go big or go home,” she said.
Sarah, Jessie Gardner, and Hillary, along with "Doris the Dog" dressed as Dolly Parton impersonators pose while participating in the Annual Tompkins Square Halloween Dog Parade on Oct. 22, 2022 in New York City.
Alexi Rosenfeld/Getty Images
Parton had long been embraced as an LGBTQ+ icon and was known for philanthropy, including her Imagination Library children's book program and a $1 million donation that helped fund research for Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine.
And on Tuesday night, the Empire State Building announced it would sparkle in pink beginning at 9:25 p.m. in a "9 to 5" tribute to Parton.
Parton’s death also compelled the mayor to weigh in.
“This is truly heartbreaking,” Mayor Zohran Mamdani said on social media. “Dolly Parton was an extraordinary person and an irreplaceable champion of the working class. We are a better country because of her.”
The Empire State Building glows pink Tuesday night in tribute to Dolly Parton.
Courtesy Madeline Fazio
Matt Michaels, a Maplewood, New Jersey resident who was remembering the country singer at Lucinda’s with a friend, said Parton’s resilience and embrace of others were values New Yorkers could recognize.
“What's New York? New York has fighters, right?” Michaels said. “There's a lot of love in this city, right? And we embrace all kinds.”
He added, “I'm not going to say Dolly could have been a New Yorker, but those are kind of compatible attitudes.”
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new york city
Giulia Heyward
Giulia Heyward is a breaking news reporter on the Day-Of desk. She previously worked at NPR, as a breaking news reporter, and the New York Times, as a reporting fellow on the national desk. Her work has also appeared in CNN, The Atlantic and Politico. Got a tip? Email [email protected] or more securely on signal at 917-715-1458.
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Phil Corso
Phil Corso is the evening news editor at WNYC/Gothamist. Got a tip? Email [email protected].
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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