Tearful Dolly Parton says her heart is broken after death of Kenny Rogers: 'I will always love you'
Country-singer Dolly Parton took to Twitter to express her grief over the death of her friend and fellow country musician, Kenny Rogers. She captioned the tribute video with these words: "You never know how much you love somebody until they’re gone. I’ve had so many wonderful years and wonderful times with my friend Kenny, but above all the music and the success, I loved him as a wonderful man and a true friend.”
Parton's video shows the country music star sitting in front of her piano in what seems to her home office. She says in her classic twangy accent: "I couldn't believe it when I turned on the TV checking to see what the coronavirus was doing. And they told me that my friend and singing partner Kenny Rogers had passed away."
She surmised that Rogers was now in a better place. "I know that we all know Kenny’s in a better place than we are today ... he’s going to be talking to God sometime today if he ain’t already, and he’s going to be asking him to spread some light onto this darkness going on here,” said Parton. “But I loved Kenny with all my heart, and my heart’s broken and a big ol’ chunk of it has gone with him today," she added.
Parton and Rogers both have had long-lived careers, spanning decades, in which they have collaborated numerous times. They are best known however for their 1983′s duet 'Islands in the Stream'. Their long association seemed top of the mind for the singer as she looked like she was tearing up while holding up a framed photo of herself and Rogers. She told her followers watching the video, "I know you are sad as I am but... God bless you, Kenny. Fly high straight to the arms of God." Then pointing to the camera, she adds, "And to the rest of you, keep the faith."
Following up on this tribute video, she addressed the late Kenny Rogers in another tweet: “So you be safe with God and just know that I will always love you.” The music icon also retweeted Billy Ray Cyrus' tribute tweet along with three heart emoticons. Cyrus' tweet was accompanied by a photo of himself and his daughter, Miley Cyrus, posing with Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers. He wrote: "No one bridged the gap between country and pop more often and better than Kenny Rogers. He will be missed, but his music and diverse style of story telling will live on forever."
Rogers’ family had announced on March 21 that he had died the night before using Roger's official Twitter account. They wrote: "The Rogers family is sad to announce that Kenny Rogers passed away last night at 10:25 pm at the age of 81. Rogers passed away peacefully at home from natural causes under the care of hospice and surrounded by his family." They also posted a link to the official press note about the country music icon's death. The note mentioned that the family was "planning a small private service at this time out of concern for the national COVID-19 emergency" It added: "They look forward to celebrating Kenny’s life publicly with his friends and fans at a later date."
Rogers is survived by wife Wanda and five children -- daughter Carole, sons Christopher and Kenny, and twins Jordan and Justin.