That last collab is the official reason Parton spoke to Bustle this week.
We all do that, dont we?
When your mother-in-law comes over?)
I know it hasnt always been easy being a woman in the male-dominated music industry.
(She defended herselfon Twitter.)
What are your thoughts on how all that unfolded?
I didnt see it, but I did hear about it.
And I know that is not true that she does not write her own songs.
I know for a fact Taylor Swift writes.
Shes been doing that since she was young.
She may have written some songs here and there with somebody.
But I guarantee she did her part on it.
And there may be some co-written songs that you dont write as much on, or whatever.
Maybe you had the melody and a few lines and then somebody else finished it.
I dont know, I dont write that much with that many people.
I dont like it, for that very reason.
Songwriting to me is very personal.
But Taylor is very smart.
Shes very intelligent about herself, about how to market herself and all.
Can you think of a time someone criticized you for something, and it felt wrong or untrue?
How did you manage your mental health afterward?
Oh, it never bothered my mental health.
It just pissed me off.
And hurt my feelings.
It hurts your feelings more than anything, especially when youre a sensitive, caring person.
Like with reviews sometimes these reviewers can be pretty cruel.
And it hurts to be criticized.
We all want to be loved, and we all want to be appreciated.
But sometimes, somewhere inside me, I knew that maybe they had a point.
And you dont wanna hear that.
Youd like to think everybody loves everything you do.
But you should probably not jump to conclusions too fast.
And sometimes, some people really do just want to hurt you.
I dont know what kind of grudges they have, or whatever.
But you cant worry about them.
You just kinda forgive em, cry, and move on.
Youre a famously prolific songwriter.
Has anyone ever accused you of not writing your own music?
Oh, Ive been sued over it.
But I didnt know them.
Id never been in a health food store at that time, either!
And they sued me.
We went to court, the jury played the songs, compared them and all that.
Of course, the jury was out on it in just a few minutes.
But that was really an embarrassment.
So I know how Taylor feels.
It was embarrassing, it was so degrading, to be in a court of law.
And they didnt win at all, but it hurts, its hurtful.
Youve used the word embarrassment a few times.
What was embarrassing about it?
That somebody would think that you would blatantly steal something from somebody else.
That I didnt have enough talent of my own.
That I would have to steal something from somebody.
But you just write.
You get back to work.
Youve always been a hard worker I read you get up at 3 a.m. these days!
Have you ever experienced burnout?
I never felt burned out from my career.
Cause I love what I do.
Its really my hobby as well as my job.
I always say its my joy and my job.
Ive just been lucky like that.
I dont have that same thing that I hear a lot of people talk about, burnout.
There are times that I physically have been worn out.
But Ive never had writers block.
But thats not writers block, that was just a physical thing.
What was going on then, do you remember?
It was when I was working onBest Little Whorehouse in Texas.
I was writing some extra songs for that.
I was physically sick, I had well, I dont remember now.
I was just feeling bad and having some trouble getting myself back together.
And I just couldnt focus on being that creative.
Oh, I got it done.
I dont mean that I had a big burnout.
But for the most part, I just keep on working.
What do you do on your days off to restore yourself?
A lot of people took up baking during the pandemic as a stress-reliever.
I give a shot to make myself not write.
You know, not work.
Because I do love to do that.
But Im always writing down ideas.
Just simple, peaceful things.
And more, in ways.
But yeah, people got into baking, and people got into cooking.
I admired that that people were actually doing something that was constructive rather than just laying around bitching.
That makes me want to come back to your work ethic.
I try not to get myself in too many situations where Imnotable to walk away.
I would never walk out of a contract, a binding contract that I had signed.
Youve got to know who you are.
Youve got to feel safe in who you are.
Youve got to claim yourself and your talent.
And then you’ve got the option to work from there.
And if something does not feel right, you might walk away.
Dont sell your soul to nobody.
That belongs to God and you.
Because usually, with most things, youll have a pretty good idea.
When I didThe Best Little Whorehose in Texas, everybody said,Oh, you cant do that.
I had just done the9 to 5thing Ive never been a secretary, but I loved doing that.
And I thought Id make a better whore than I did a secretary!
But I had to weigh that.
And I went through a lot of hurt on that movie, a lot of criticism.
But I weighed all of that.
And Im willing to pay my own prices.
Im willing to make the sacrifices when I know what Im up against.
