Harry Styles Honors Late Dolly Parton as He Kicks Off Madison Square Garden Residency: ‘We Love You’

Harry Styles is remembering one of his musical inspirations, Dolly Parton, in the wake of her death.

As the New York leg of Harry Styles’ ‘Together, Together’ tour kicked off at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday, August 26, the “Aperture” singer took a moment to share with attendees how much Parton meant to him. “I wanna say a proper ‘Thank you’ to all the musicians over the years that’ve inspired me,” he began, per footage captured by Variety.

“Dolly, we love you,” Styles, 32, added. “Thank you so much.” 

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#HarryStyles pays tribute to #DollyParton during Night 1 of his tour at MSG

♬ original sound – Variety

Parton’s hit 1974 country ballad, “I Will Always Love You” began to play moments later. Although Styles opted not to sing along, he encouraged fans in attendance to dance to the popular track.

Styles’ tribute for Parton comes just one day after she died on Tuesday, August 25, at age 80. In a statement shared with People, representatives for the music industry legend revealed that she had been navigating a “brief battle with cancer” ahead of her death. Her team did not disclose the type of cancer with which Parton was diagnosed.

Parton’s many contributions to music were widespread. Beyond “I Will Always Love You” achieving another wave of success when performed decades later by Whitney Houston for The Bodyguard, the 11-time Grammy Award winner is often credited as one of the pioneers of the country to pop crossover trend. Hits like “Here You Come Again,” “Jolene” and “9 to 5” aided in her achieving mainstream crossover success. Her efforts have led to her induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum, and the Songwriters Hall of Fame.

In previously opening up about her legacy in a 2023 ABC News interview, Parton
—who is also a two-time Oscar nominee and three-time Emmy Award winner—shared how she hoped to be remembered by the world.

“There’s a lot of wonderful things that’s happened to me. I think one of things I’m proudest of is the Imagination Library. But of course, I’m a writer and a singer,” Parton said.

“… I’m just trying to leave as much stuff [behind as possible]. I just want to see how much I can do in a lifetime,” she concluded. “And I’ve been blessed, and I’ve been lucky, and I don’t take any of that for granted, but I just wanted to be remembered well.”