Dolly Parton responds to Beyoncé’s cover of ‘Jolene’ on ‘Cowboy Carter’
Dolly Parton has responded to Beyoncé‘s cover of ‘Jolene’ on Queen Bey’s new album ‘Cowboy Carter’.
The star dropped her new LP earlier today (March 29), which was reported to include a cover of Parton’s iconic hit. However, fans have discovered Beyoncé has actually rewritten ‘Jolene’ and its lyrics to address Jay-Z cheating on her.
‘Jolene’ now refers to someone trying to “come between a family and a happy man”, with Beyoncé singing in the chorus: “Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene / I’m warnin’ you, don’t come for my man / Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene / Don’t take the chance because you think you can”.
Beyoncé’s ‘Jolene’ cover also sees her reaffirm her love with her husband, with whom she tied the knot in 2008, after having dated since roughly 2002: “We’ve been deep in love for twenty years / I raised that man, I raised his kids / I know my man better than he knows himself,” she sings.
In the original song, Parton said she “can’t compete” with ‘Jolene’. But this time round, Beyoncé has a more empowering perception of herself: “Jolene, I know I’m a queen, Jolene / I’m still a Creole banjee bitch from Louisianne (Don’t try me)”.
Now Parton has taken to her Instagram to give her verdict on the cover writing: “Wow, I just heard Jolene. Beyoncé is giving that girl some trouble and she deserves it! Love, Dolly P.”
It comes after she previously gave Beyoncé’s country pivot her blessing, saying: “I’m a big fan of Beyoncé and very excited that she’s done a country album.” Ahead of Queen Bey’s version, Parton also asked fans to stream her original track.
With ‘Cowboy Carter’ now released, fans have been reacting to the new cover of The Beatles’ ‘Blackbird’ and Beyoncé’s re-interpretation of Parton’s ‘Jolene’.
Elsewhere, Azealia Banks gave her verdict on the album after she previously criticised Queen Bey’s new musical direction, which she described as “white women cosplay”, while also stating that she feels the singer is “setting herself up to be ridiculed”.
After remarking that she would have “jumped out of my seat” if there had been a KT Tunstall feature on the record, the singer-songwriter jokingly responded: “To be fair, I’d have 100% got off the couch.”
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Damian Jones
NME
