In a USA Today/Tennessean exclusive, for KING & COUNTRY’s Joel Smallbone explained how the collaboration came to be. After watching Dolly’s Netflix movie, “Dumplin,” Joel fell in love with the film’s plot and soundtrack, leading him to reach out to Dolly.
“When I first heard ‘God Only Knows’ I thought it was one of the best songs I’d ever heard,” Dolly said. “I came from a very spiritual background, and I love anything to do with inspirational songs that lift people up. I feel that this is a good song for right now, and it’s so well written. I know that it touched me at a time when I needed to be lifted up.”
Dolly Parton has joined two-time GRAMMYⓇ award-winning duo for KING & COUNTRY for a brand-new version of the group’s award-winning single “God Only Knows,” as well as a powerful music video. Dolly’s presence on the track takes the song to new heights, with shimmering acoustic guitars complementing the song’s message of hope.
For KING & COUNTRY’s Joel Smallbone reflected,
“Hearing Dolly sing that chorus and those words was an out of body experience for us as writers and artists. As soon as we heard her vocals on the track, we immediately realized that this song was meant for her voice.”
Additionally, Dolly is featured in a powerful new music video for “God Only Knows,” as she and the Smallbone brothers struggle to find themselves before resigning to faith and belief. The full-length video was shot in Nashville, produced by Patrick Tohill and directed by Benjamin Smallbone.
“God Only Knows” recently won “Song of the Year” honors at the K-LOVE awards, received a Dove Award nomination for Pop/Contemporary Recorded Song of the Year, and held the No. 1 spot on Billboard’s Top Christian Songs chart for 11 weeks. Additionally, the song hit Top 30 on Mediabase and Billboard’s Hot AC charts while garnering 330 million radio impressions and over 65 million streams across all digital platforms.
Photo Courtesy Sony Music Entertainment
Dolly Parton has revealed the cover art and track list for the soundtrack to the anticipated Netflix film Dumplin’.
Featuring exceptional guests including Sia, Elle King, Mavis Staples, Miranda Lambert, Willa Amai, Rhonda Vincent, Alison Krauss, Macy Gray, and DOROTHY, as well as cameos by Dumplin’ stars Danielle Macdonald and Jennifer Aniston, the project was produced by GRAMMY nominee Linda Perry.
DUMPLIN' ORIGINAL MOTION PICTURE SOUNDTRACK will be released Nov. 30 and is available for pre-order beginning Nov. 2. Fans who pre-order the album that day will instantly receive “Girl In The Movies,” a song which is creating awards season chatter and has already garnered a nomination for Best Original Song from a Feature Film by the Hollywood Music In Media Awards. The first release from the album – “Here I Am” featuring Sia – hit No.1 on iTunes Country Songs and Top 10 all-genre upon its release last month.
Parton recently visited with national radio outlets including SiriusXM The Highway with Storme Warren, America’s Morning Show with Ty, Kelly & Chuck, and The Bobby Bones Show to talk about working on the music for the film.
Songwriters: *Dolly Parton, **Dolly Parton/Linda Perry, +Curly Putman, ^Barry Mann/Cynthia Weil
NOTE: Additional original catalog songs and catalog remixes as featured in the film from Parton will be available as part of the streaming version of the album.
Dumplin’ (Macdonald) is the teenage daughter of a former beauty queen (Aniston), who signs up for her mom’s pageant as a protest that escalates when other contestants follow her footsteps, revolutionizing the pageant and their small Texas town. The film stars Macdonald (Bird Box, Patti Cake$) and Aniston (Upcoming Murder Mystery, Horrible Bosses, Marley and Me), in addition to Odeya Rush (Lady Bird, Goosebumps), Dove Cameron (Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Liv and Maddie, Descendants), and Harold Perrineau (Claws, Lost) and is directed by Anne Fletcher (The Proposal, 27 Dresses).
Screenwriter Kristin Hahn wrote the adaptation of Julie Murphy’s No. 1 New York Times bestselling novel of the same name. Producers include A Cota Films and 50 Degrees Entertainment Presentation - Michael Costigan (American Gangster, A Bigger Splash, Brokeback Mountain, Ghost in the Shell), Hahn (The Switch, Cake), Mohamed AlRafi (Above Suspicion, Lying and Stealing), and Trish Hofmann (Gringo, Get On Up). Executive producers are Aniston and Danny Nozell.
Dumplin' will release on Netflix and in select theaters December 7.
Dolly Parton's "Pure & Simple" debuts at #1 not only in the U.S., but, also on the national country charts in Canada, U.K. and Australia. It's Dolly's first No. 1 in 25 years and her seventh overall.
Dolly’s 43rd studio recording and the first release of her recently-announced joint venture between Dolly Records and Sony Music Nashville, achieves #1 on Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart with first-week sales of 20,000 units! This marks the first time Dolly has topped Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart in the 25-year history of SoundScan.
The new album which released August 19th on Dolly Records/RCA Nashville lands the #11 slot on the all-genre Billboard 200 chart with a first-week total consumption of 21,000. On Billboard’s Americana/Folk Albums chart, the disc debuts at #1. In the UK, Pure & Simple enters the all-genre album sales chart at #2, behind Frank Ocean’s Blonde.
Left to right: Danny Nozell, CEO, CTK Management; Dolly Parton; and, Kirt Webster, President/CEO, Webster Public Relations
Upon hearing the news, Dolly Parton, who co-produced and wrote every song on Pure & Simple, enthused,
"Boy, it's a good day for me. I am a happy girl! It feels great to be #1 as it's been a long time and it feels so good to still be in the game after all this time."
Remarked Doug Morris, CEO, Sony Music Entertainment,
“Congratulations, Dolly, for your stunning debut with Pure & Simple. You put your heart and soul in this album, and we join you in celebrating a long-overdue #1 on the country album chart.”
CTK Management CEO Danny Nozell said,
"There is nobody more deserving of this tremendous success. Having worked with Dolly for the past 13 years, I have never met any person that works harder than her. She is a businesswoman that understands her brand and knows exactly what to do and when to do it, and once again, she proves it with a #1 album."
The new project is a collection of love songs written and produced by Dolly. True to its name, the minimalist album uses simple arrangements to create a pure sound.
1991 - "Eagle When She Flies"
1987 - "Trio" (With Emmylou Harris and Linda Ronstadt)
1981 - "9 to 5 and Odd Jobs"
1978 - "Heartbreaker"
1977 - "Here You Come Again"
1977 - "New Harvest…First Gathering"
Preview and buy Dolly Parton's "Pure & Simple" here
In the midst of her North American tour, Dolly Parton and Sony Music Nashville announced a joint venture and the launch of Dolly’s new studio album, “Pure & Simple,” for worldwide distribution on August 19. Releasing on Dolly Records/RCA Nashville, “Pure & Simple” is available for pre-order. Dolly said,
“I may not be pure, but I’m as simple as they come! This new Pure & Simple project is really special to me because I’m taking my fans back to my roots. I feel like these songs have a pure, tender side and we didn’t go overboard with arrangements. I’m so glad we’ve teamed up with our friends at Sony to get this album out to the fans.”
All songs are written by Dolly Parton and she co-produced the album.
Produced by Dolly Parton
Dolly Parton Outside Your Door Lyric Video
Dolly Parton Pure and Simple Lyric Video
"The song 'Pure and Simple' is about an uncomplicated, real love. I recorded it in a pure and simple fashion. It reminds me of the early country songs I used to write and record...just uncomplicated, pure and simple. I'm glad it's the first single. I hope the fans will simply enjoy it."
In June, Dolly set out on the Pure & Simple Tour visiting 60 cities throughout the United States and Canada. It is her largest North American tour in over 25 years with many sold-out performances. Fans have expressed their overwhelming devotion to Dolly and proved they will always love her, pure and simple.
This December, Dolly Parton’s childhood memory that inspired a country music hit and later became a children's book, will premiere as the NBC movie, "Dolly Parton's Coat Of Many Colors." The stars of Dolly's new movie shared stories of how they bonded, much like the real Parton family, over movie nights, pool parties and field trips. To hear them talk about the experience, one might wonder how they managed to get the movie made. However, they did, and their excitement about the finished product is contagious.
Step behind the scenes as Ricky shares a touching note from Dolly, Farrah reveals her favorite Dolly song and see why playing "Little Dolly" is a career highlight for Alyvia Alyn.
Discover more about Dolly's new movie from the stars themselves. See full interviews and MORE!
Tune in December 10, at 9 p.m. EST to watch "Dolly Parton's Coat of Many Colors" airing on NBC.
CREDITS
Starring
Alyvia Alyn Lind, Jennifer Nettles, Ricky Schroder, Gerald McRaney
Executive Producers
Dolly Parton, Sam Haskell, Pamela K. Long
Written By
Pamela K. Long
Director
Stephen Herek
Line Producer
Hudson Hickman
Casting Director
Patrick Rush
Produced By
Warner Bros. Television, Magnolia Hill Entertainment, DP Productions
