Dolly Parton Assures Fans She’s ‘OK’ Amid Health Rumors: ‘Do I Look Sick to You?!’

“I don’t think God is through with me and I ain’t done workin’,” Country Music Hall of Famer Dolly Parton said in a video on Oct. 8, as she reassured fans who have been worried about the singer.

The video comes after online rumors had been spreading regarding the 79-year-old singer’s health.

“I want to say something,” Parton said in the video. “Well, today’s Oct. 8 and obviously I’m here doing some commercials for the Grand Ole Opry, which is why I’m dressed kinda like a country-western girl, but before I got started, I wanted to say, I know lately, everybody thinks that I am sicker than I am … do I look sick to you?! I’m workin’ hard here.”

“Anyway, I wanted to put everybody’s mind at ease, those of you that seem to be real concerned, which I appreciate,” she said, noting that she appreciated fans’ prayers.

She went on to emphasize that that she’s doing fine for now, though she does have some health issues to address. “I want you to know that I’m OK,” Parton continued. “I’ve got some problems as I mentioned. Back when my husband Carl was very sick, that was for a long time, and then when he passed, I didn’t take care of myself. I let a lot of things go that I I should’ve been takin’ care of, so anyway when I got around to it, the doctor said, ‘We need to take care of this, we need to take care of that.’ Nothin’ major, but I did have to cancel some things so I could be closer to home, closer to Vanderbilt, where I’m kinda havin’ a few treatments here and there.”

“But I wanted you to know that I’m not dying,” she added. “There’s just a lot of rumors flyin’ around and I figured if you heard it from me, you’d know that I was OK.”

Parton’s beloved husband Carl Dean died earlier this year at age 82. In September, Parton revealed that she is postponing her Las Vegas residency at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace due to some health challenges. The residency had been set to start in December, but is now slated to begin in 2026.

“In all seriousness, given this, I am not going to be able to rehearse and put together the show that I want you to see, and the show that you deserve to see,” Parton had said in a social media message on Sept. 28. “You pay good money to see me perform, and I want to be at my best for you. While I’ll still be able to work on all of my projects from here in Nashville, I just need a little time to get show ready, as they say.”

The rumors about her health kicked into high gear on Oct. 7 after Parton’s sister Freida posted on social media, asking for people to pray for the singer. Freida soon followed up with a post apologizing for worrying fans and saying that Parton had simply been feeling “under the weather.”

Watch Dolly Parton’s message to fans below: