What Radio Can Learn from Dolly Parton
By David Kidd, BPR
The recent death of Dolly Parton at the age of 80 marks the loss of one of the entertainment industry’s great originals. Tributes flowed around the world. But beyond the songs and extraordinary career, Dolly leaves behind some valuable lessons for radio.
- Be unmistakably you
Nobody ever confused Dolly Parton with anyone else.
As Billy Joel said in his tribute to her: “Dolly Parton has transcended time and become one of those iconic artists who is known for just being Dolly.”
It’s another way of saying that she achieved something every great radio personality and every great radio station should aspire to: instant, unmistakable identity.
Her voice, appearance, humour, values and storytelling created an instantly recognisable brand. She understood something radio sometimes forgets: distinctiveness is more valuable than perfection.
Too many stations gradually get rid of everything that might polarise an audience until they become perfectly competent…..completely interchangeable….and even forgettable.
Dolly wasn’t afraid of being different or unique; she made uniqueness her competitive advantage.
- Great content starts with a story
Dolly was an exceptional songwriter because she understood people. Songs such as Jolene, Coat of Many Colours and I Will Always Love You weren’t merely songs; they were stories about jealousy, poverty, love, ambition and heartbreak. Her catalogue ultimately reached audiences far beyond country music.
Radio can become obsessed with topics, benchmarks and clocks.
But listeners rarely remember a “topic”.
They remember a great story and how it made them feel.
- Authenticity can’t be manufactured
Dolly’s larger-than-life appearance might have been carefully constructed, but the person underneath it always seemed remarkably genuine.
She could laugh at herself. She talked openly about where she came from. And despite enormous success, she never appeared embarrassed by her roots.
For radio talent, that’s an important distinction.
Authenticity doesn’t mean revealing everything about yourself. It means listeners believing that the person they hear on-air is actually you.
- Evolve without abandoning your brand
Dolly moved from country music to pop, movies, television, Broadway, business and philanthropy without ever ceasing to be Dolly Parton.
Radio should think about that when it looks at Spotify, podcasts, YouTube, TikTok and whatever turns up next.
The question isn’t “How do we become more like them?”
It’s “How do we take what makes us special into the new audio marketplace?”
- Give people another reason to care about you
One of Dolly’s greatest achievements wasn’t a recording at all. Her philanthropy is well known.
Her Imagination Library, founded in 1995, was inspired by her father’s inability to read and write. It grew from a local Tennessee initiative into an international program distributing millions of books to children every month.
It demonstrated something powerful about brands.
The strongest brands aren’t just products. They mean something to people.
Radio has always had an extraordinary ability to connect communities, help people and occasionally make a genuine difference.
When that’s sincere….not another marketing promotion….it creates something increasingly valuable.
An emotional connection.
And finally……
Dolly had a great sense of humour and the ability to make jokes about herself:
‘‘It costs a lot of money to look this cheap”.
“I’m not offended by all the dumb blonde jokes because I know I’m not dumb…and I’m not blonde either.”
And probably my favourite..
“People always ask me how long it takes to do my hair. I don’t know, I’m never there.”
Beyond the jokes, Dolly Parton’s career ultimately provides a pretty good programming strategy:
Be distinctive. Tell great stories. Be human. Keep evolving. Know what makes you valuable. And give people a reason to care about you.
Radio has more competitors than ever before.
It cannot afford to be forgettable.
Dolly Parton never was.
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