Billy Ray Cyrus has paid an emotional tribute to Dolly Parton following the country music icon’s death, remembering not only their decades-long friendship but also the deeply personal connection that linked Parton to his family.
Parton died on August 25 at the age of 80, according to HELLO! reporter Faye James, whose original report detailed Cyrus’s tribute and the history of the pair’s relationship. Her death also fell on Cyrus’s birthday, adding another poignant dimension to an already emotional moment for the singer.
In his tribute, Cyrus revealed that Parton had recently sent him a personal message in which she told him she loved him “with her whole heart.” He responded by promising that his love for her would endure in the same way.
“Dolly recently sent me a beautiful message, telling me she loved me with her whole heart,” Cyrus wrote on Instagram. “I will always love her in the same way…with my whole heart…and I always will.”
The message offered an intimate final glimpse of the bond between two performers whose friendship stretched back to the early 1990s, when Cyrus was emerging as a major country star following the success of “Achy Breaky Heart.”
A friendship that began on tour
For Cyrus, Parton was more than a fellow country performer. She was someone he had admired since childhood and who eventually became a close friend and an important presence in his family.
In his Instagram tribute, Cyrus reflected on the difficulty of knowing where to begin when faced with so many memories of Parton. He recalled growing up with her music and image as a constant part of American popular culture, describing her as someone who seemed to be present in people’s homes through television and music.
The relationship became more personal after the two toured together in the 1990s.
Parton herself previously explained the origins of their friendship during an appearance on The Howard Stern Show. She recalled that after Cyrus achieved major success with “Achy Breaky Heart,” the two artists crossed paths professionally through touring. Their shared experiences on the road helped turn a professional relationship into a lasting friendship.
“We just got to be good friends,” Parton said, according to the HELLO! report, noting their shared Southern roots: Cyrus was from Kentucky while she was from Tennessee.
Their friendship also survived the kind of tabloid attention that frequently surrounded prominent entertainers in the 1990s.
Cyrus remembered the rumors differently
One of the most striking memories in Cyrus’s tribute involved rumors that he and Parton were having an affair.
Cyrus recalled that in 1992, he went to Parton’s dressing room to apologize for the stories circulating about the two of them. Rather than treating the rumors as a serious personal crisis, Parton responded in the playful manner for which she was known.
According to Cyrus’s account, she winked and told him: “Honey, this trash sells records!”
The anecdote captures an important part of the friendship Cyrus described: Parton’s ability to meet uncomfortable or sensational situations with humor while refusing to allow tabloid speculation to define her relationships.
Cyrus included the story in his tribute as a memory of their early years together, rather than as confirmation of the rumors themselves.
For a young performer navigating the sudden attention that came with a major country hit, Parton’s response also illustrated the kind of perspective that could come from someone who had spent decades dealing with fame.
Parton’s connection to Miley Cyrus began before she was born
The friendship between Billy Ray Cyrus and Dolly Parton eventually became a family relationship when Cyrus asked Parton to become the godmother of his daughter, Miley Cyrus.
According to Parton’s own recollection, Cyrus approached her before Miley’s birth in 1992 and told her they were having a girl and that she needed to be her godmother.
Parton said she was honored to accept.
That decision created one of the most recognizable relationships connecting generations of country and pop music. Parton did not simply remain a family friend from a distance. Over the years, she developed a close relationship with Miley, whom she described as someone she had known since before she was born.
The bond between Parton and Miley became particularly visible as Miley developed her own career.
Parton appeared multiple times on Hannah Montana, the Disney Channel series that helped transform Miley into a global star. Her appearances gave audiences a chance to see the relationship that had existed away from the cameras between the legendary country singer and her goddaughter.
For Billy Ray, that relationship was a continuation of the connection that had begun with his own friendship with Parton.
Miley Cyrus saw Parton as both mentor and role model
Miley has repeatedly spoken publicly about the influence Parton had on her life.
In an essay for TIME, Miley described Parton not simply as an idol because of her extraordinary career, but as a role model whose values and moral character were equally important.
Miley praised Parton’s honesty, truth and faith, while also highlighting the responsibility that came with Parton’s status as one of country music’s most influential figures.
She described Parton as her “fairy godmother,” a phrase that reflected both their family connection and the larger place Parton occupied in Miley’s life.
Miley’s description also helps explain why Parton’s influence extended far beyond music. For the Cyrus family, she was not merely a famous performer who happened to know Billy Ray. She became a trusted figure whose relationship with Miley continued across childhood, television success and adulthood.
Parton’s appearances on Hannah Montana further cemented that connection in the public imagination.
A bond Cyrus said was immediate
Billy Ray has previously offered his own description of the connection between Parton and Miley.
Speaking to AXS TV, he said the two “just fell in love” with one another and characterized their relationship as one between kindred spirits.
He recalled that their connection was apparent from the moment they met, describing them as being exceptionally well matched in personality.
That relationship became one of the enduring threads running through Miley’s career. Parton could occupy different roles at different moments — country music legend, godmother, mentor, television guest and family friend — without losing the personal closeness that had defined the relationship from the beginning.
It also meant that Parton’s relationship with Billy Ray carried significance beyond their own friendship. Through Miley, the connection became part of a second generation of the Cyrus family.
Cyrus’s final tribute focused on love rather than spectacle
Against that history, Cyrus’s latest message to Parton is notable for its simplicity.
Rather than concentrating solely on Parton’s extraordinary career, he remembered the private moments and personal memories that had accumulated over decades. His recollection of the 1992 tabloid rumors, their years touring together and her relationship with his daughter all formed part of a larger portrait of someone he regarded as a close friend.
The revelation that Parton had recently sent him a message expressing her love gave his tribute an especially personal quality.
Cyrus did not disclose further details about the circumstances or content of that private exchange. What he did share was the central sentiment: Parton told him she loved him with her whole heart, and he said he would continue to love her in the same way.
That final exchange now sits alongside decades of shared history.
For Cyrus, Parton was the artist he remembered loving as a child, the country star who became his touring partner and friend, the woman who laughed off rumors at the height of his early fame, and the godmother who became deeply connected to his daughter.
For Miley, Parton represented another kind of legacy — one rooted not only in musical achievement but in character, generosity and mentorship.
Parton’s influence reaches beyond one family
The Cyrus family’s connection with Parton is one example of how her influence extended across generations of performers.
Her career made her one of country music’s most recognizable figures, but her relationships with younger artists helped keep that influence personal as well as professional. In Miley’s case, the connection began before her birth and continued through childhood television appearances and adulthood in the spotlight.
Miley’s earlier comments about Parton emphasized that distinction. She viewed her godmother as someone whose significance came from more than fame, pointing instead to the values she believed stood behind Parton’s public persona.
That perspective is reflected in Cyrus’s own farewell.
His tribute did not present Parton simply as an icon whose career could be measured through records, performances or appearances. Instead, it centered on memories, friendship and affection — the elements of her life that remained meaningful to those who knew her personally.
Parton’s death therefore marks a loss that reaches well beyond the country music industry. For Billy Ray Cyrus, it is the passing of a friend whose presence had been woven into his life for decades. For Miley, it is the loss of a godmother and mentor who had been part of her story from before she was born.
And for audiences who watched the relationship unfold through music, television and interviews, Cyrus’s tribute provides another perspective on the personal ties behind two generations of American entertainment.
The most intimate detail may also be the simplest: shortly before her death, Parton told Cyrus that she loved him with her whole heart.
His answer was to tell her, in return, that he always would.
The post Billy Ray Cyrus Shares Dolly Parton’s Final Touching Message Before Her Death appeared first on Owink.
Source: Owink
