When Dolly Parton started having hits at pop radio, beginning with "I Will Always Love You" in 1974, country music purists were unhappy. But for Parton, who by the late '70s was having plenty of crossover hits like "Here You Come Again," "Heartbreaker" and more, the success in another genre was a way to help everyone, including herself.
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"I've been a writer and a singer all my life. And I was as as popular as anybody could be in country music," Parton tells Colin Irwin in a resurfaced interview from that time period. "But I was only selling like... 200,000 albums. So although everybody was talking about how good I was, there's just a certain amount of people who buy records in country music. And you can't expect to make a lot of money just in country music."
A businesswoman first, Parton knew then - and still knows now - that the only way to become truly successful is to not be limited by genre lines.
"You have to make records that cross over," the singer maintains. "So since this is my business, then I should try to make the most of it, and reach a broader audience, and make as much money as I could."
Dolly Parton Remains Rooted In Country Music
Parton might have plenty of pop hits, and is now a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. But for Parton, she will always remain rooted in country music.
"Country music is my first love," Parton shares. "And I would have loved it had all my albums crossed over just the way they were. And, I would have made a lot of money. But times change, music moves on, and I'm the kind of person who likes to move with the times. I don't wanna get left behind. "
Not only did Parton not shy away from making pop music, she made sure she did it with a bang.
"When I first started this big move, this big crossover, I knew I was gonna have to get a lotta publicity," she recalls. "So I got the best management, the best PR people to expose me, to the public. Let them see who I am. Let them hear about me, [and] let them hear why I look the way aI look. Why my music is so important to me. Why it's important to me to be an international star."
