We live in a very unique time in which the art of past musicians can live on long after they die or stop producing music. The art of musicians in decades past continues to influence and guide the art of today. Who is to say how long these songs will live into the future?
The millennial generation lived through the digitization of music and now the streaming era, which has allowed them to explore greater varieties of music than any generation before them.
So, who are the most popular musicians according to millennials? You might be surprised. All the data here have been taken from YouGov and are current as of the publication of this article.
Why Are We Talking About This?
The music industry is always growing and unpredictable. If you are trying to break into the music business or become a musician yourself, it pays to understand the history of the artists that came before and what people are listening to the most today.
#15 Adele
- Records Sold: 72 Million
- Net Worth: $220 Million
- Most Popular Songs: “Rolling in the Deep,” “Hello,” “Someone Like You”
Adele Laurie Blue Adkins was born on May 5, 1988 in London. She is a wildly successful singer who has won 16 Grammys, and one Oscar, and is also the first artist in history to win the two-time winner of the top three categories- Record of the Year, Album, and Song.
She scored a record deal at the age of 18 in 2006, shortly after graduating from the Brit School for Creative & Performing Arts. Other alumni from this school include Amy Winehouse and Tom Holland. l in London. She was inspired by artists like Ella Fitzgerald, Etta James, Mary J. Blige, and Destiny’s Child. She was discovered by XL Recordings in 2006 from a demo she posted on her MySpace page.
She has released 4 studio Albums, the latest one released in 2021, and currently has a residency in Las Vegas. Her music video, “Hello,” was the first music video ever to be shot with IMAX cameras. It also broke download records by receiving more than 1 million in the first week of its release.
#14 Queen
- Records Sold: 300 Million
- Net Worth: $600 Million
- Most Popular Songs: “Bohemian Rhapsody,” “Under Pressure,” “We Will Rock You,” “Fat Bottomed Girls”
Queen was formed in Britain in 1971 with principal members, Freddie Mercury, Brian May, John Deacon, and Roger Taylor. Queen is best known for its elaborate music, theatrical flamboyant performances, and advocacy for the LGBTQ+ community. Queen was formed when the principal members were in art school in 1971. The band gained global fame once they teamed up with producer Roy Thomas Baker in 1974.
Their most popular albums, A Night at the Opera (1975), and The Game (1980) had several chart-topping hits. Their popularity lost traction in the 1980s, but after Queen’s iconic performance at the charity concert, Live Aid in 1985, the band immortalized themselves. Mercury released a solo album that year and collaborated on two more albums by 1988.
Lead Singer, Freddie Mercury, passed away from Aids in 1991. The band posthumously released its final album in 1995, was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001, and still tours today. A biopic was released about the band in 2018. The band is still touring this year, with new lead singer, Adam Lambert.
#13 Bob Marley
- Records Sold: 21 Million
- Net Worth: $11.5 Million
- Most Popular Songs: “One Love,” “Three Little Birds,” “ Buffalo Soldier,” “Get Up Stand Up”
Bob Marley was a Jamaican reggae musician known for his creation of a rock-reggae hybrid genre that gave a voice to the disenfranchised people of the West Indies. He was biracial which gave him a unique worldview that heavily influenced his music. His formative years were spent impoverished living in West Kingston. His maternal grandfather was an honored civic official and bush doctor, and a prosperous farmer, his father was a white overseer. His mother was disinherited by his prominent family for his interracial marriage.
He was working an apprenticeship as a welder while in school and met Desmond Dekker, who exposed him to ska. He formed a vocal trio called The Wailers and received vocal coaching from Joe Higgs in the early 1960s. The group added 3 members and started recording with Island Records in 1963. The Wailers rose to stardom with their song, “Simmer Down.”
Marley became a global superstar in his own right around 1972. Marley’s last album was released posthumously in 1983. He started to be known as a political figure in 1976 when he survived an assassination attempt. The attempt was in retribution for his support of the incumbent prime minister, Michael Manley. After surviving the attempt, he fled to London and lived there in exile from Jamaica. He headlined the One Love Peace concert in 1978 to attempt a truce between the warring political factions. At the concert, he brought together Manley and Edward Seaga, his political adversary. Marley died from cancer in 1981. His record, Legend (1984) is the best-selling reggae album of all time.
#12 Prince
- Records Sold: 100 Million
- Net Worth: $200 Million
- Most Popular Songs: “1999,” “Alphabet St.,” “I wanna Be Your Lover,” “Controversy”
Prince Rogers Nelson was born in Minneapolis in 1958. His parents performed together in a jazz band. By the time he was 10, Prince had taught himself how to play guitar, drums, and piano. He started the band, Grand Central, with high school friends. He was known for his songs that blended themes of spirituality and sexuality.
He signed with Warner Bros in 1978. He played most of the instruments on his first two albums. He started stirring controversy with his sexual album, Dirty Mind, in 1980. He gained fame when he released the album Purple Rain (1984), which also was made into a film that grossed $70 Million in the U.S. and won an Academy Award. By 1986, he had released eight studio albums. His eighth album, Parade, became the soundtrack to Prince’s second film, Under the Cherry Moon, which he directed and starred in.
By 1989, Prince had become the most commercially successful pop artist in the U.S. He launched his new band, the Next Power Generation, in 1990. He performed at the 1991 MTV Video Music Awards in seatless pants. In 1992, he signed a $100 Million record deal with Warner Bros, the largest recording and music publishing contract in history at that time.
Feeling caged by his record label, he changed his name to an unpronounceable glyph that fused female and male astrological symbols from 1993-2000 and was known as “The Artist Formerly Known As Prince.” He was often seen sporting the word “SLAVE,” written down the side of his face. His contract ended in 1996, and he released the triple album, Emancipation. He took a hiatus between 1999-2004 until he performed at the Grammy Awards with Beyonce Knowles. He was also inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and released another album the same year. He performed during the Super Bowl XLI halftime show in 2007. He is considered to be the greatest Super Bowl Performer ever.
As the owner of all of his masters, he was able to control the online distribution of his music. He was against streaming services and railed against the payment model. He unsuccessfully filed a lawsuit against YouTube for the removal of a baby dancing to one of his songs. In 2015, he staged a Dance Rally 4 Peace to pay tribute to Freddie Gray. In 2016, he was found dead at his compound a week after he was hospitalized for a Percocet overdose. It was revealed that he died from an accidental overdose of fentanyl.
#11 Rihanna
- Records Sold: 60 Million
- Net Worth: $1.36 Billion
- Most Popular Songs: “Umbrella,” “SOS,” “Work,” “Diamonds”
Rhianna, born in Barbados in 1988, auditioned with two classmates at 15 years old for music producer Evan Rodgers. Rhianna moved in with Rodgers and his wife the following year in Connecticut to work on a demo album. She auditioned for Def Jam Records in 2005, and 8 months later released “Pon de Replay,” her first single. It quickly reached No. 2 on the Billboard singles chart.
By 2007, she had released 3 albums and transformed her look from teen pop princess to superstar. She won her first Grammy for her single, “Umbrella.” Besides releasing a slew of hit singles in the following years, she also collaborated with other artists such as Eminem’s “Love the Way You Lie,” Maroon 5’s “ If I Never See Your Face Again,” and Jay-Z’s “Run this Town.”
By 2012, she released her seventh studio album. In 2015, she became the first artist to have 100 million singles digitally downloaded. Besides her wild musical success, she also branched out to screen work. She starred in Battleship (2012), Home (2015), Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets (2017), the TV show Bates Motel (2017), Ocean’s 8 (2018), and Guava Island (2019). She is also a philanthropist with her nonprofit Clara Lionel Foundation launched in 2012.
She became a spokesperson against domestic violence after being assaulted by then-boyfriend Chris Brown in 2009. She is currently dating A$AP Rocky. The pair have two children together. Rhianna has her own makeup line, Fenty X, which is worth $2.8 Billion, and has recently come under scrutiny for its alleged unethical business practices and exploitation of workers. She is the first female music artist to be a Billionaire. She has won 9 Grammy Awards, performed a Super Bowl Half Time Show, achieved 14 Billboard Hot 100 chart-toppers, received over 12 billion streams on Spotify, and has sold over 60 Million albums globally.
#10 Linkin Park
- Records Sold: 100 Million
- Net Worth: $320 Million
- Most Popular Songs: “In the End,” “One Step Closer,” “Breaking the Habit,” “Somewhere I Belong”
Linkin Park’s original members were Rob Bourdon, Brad Delson, Mike Shinoda, Dave Farrell, Joe Hahn, and Mark Wakefield in 1996 under the band name SuperXero. In 1999, Mark Wakefield was traded for Chester Bennington, and the name changed to Linkin Park. The name was to honor a neighborhood in Santa Monica, California. Its first album released in 2000, Hybrid Theory, quickly launched them into stardom. They launched their annual headlining tour, Projekt Revolution, in 2002.
Quickly dominating the rap-rock genre, Linkin Park collaborated with Jay-Z on a mashup album in 2004 that launched them into even more fame. By 2007, the group moved away from rap and transitioned to a rock-atmospheric blend. Their single from their album, Minutes to Midnight, “Shadow of the Day,” won them the Best Rock Video award at the MTV VMAs in 2008. By 2015, the band was working on their seventh studio album. One More Light came out on May 19, 2017, and Bennington passed away from suicide on July 20, 2017. The band set up the One More Light fund which was a charity that had been set up in Bennington’s memory. The band was on hiatus until 2020 when they started making music again.
The band released their new album, Papercuts (Singles Collection 200-2023) in April of 2024. The band also has a book coming out called, It Starts With One: The Legend and Legacy of Linkin Park comes out on Oct 1 of this year. It tells the whole story of the band in honor of the late frontman Bennington. To help destigmatize mental health, a portion of the proceeds will be donated to Backline, and the National Alliance on Mental Health.
#9 Johnny Cash
- Records Sold: 90 Million
- Net Worth: $60 Million
- Most Popular Songs: “Ring of Fire,” “Hurt,” “I Walk the Line,” “Sunday Morning Coming Down”
Johnny Cash, AKA “Man in Black,” grew up in a farming community in Arkansas in 1932. He joined the Air Force after high school. He started a band called the Landsberg Barbarians, which gave Cash the opportunity to perform live shows, hone his songwriting skills, and learn to play the guitar. After being discharged after 4 years of service, he married his first wife, Vivian Liberto, and started a band called Johnny Cash and the Tennessee Two. The trio was known for the blend of blues and country music. They auditioned for the producer Sam Phillips, who liked their sound but wanted them to return with an original song, instead of their gospel song choices.
The band was signed in 1955. Cash was catapulted into fame after the release of the hit song, “I Walk the Line,” in 1956. In the 1960s Cash was touring 300 nights a year with the Tennessee Three. He starred in the movie Five Minutes to Live (1961), and released, “Ring of Fire,” in 1963. In 1966, his wife, Vivian, filed for divorce. Cash engaged in a struggle with substance abuse and almost overdosed in 1967.
Cash married bandmate, June Carter in 1968 and she helped him through his addiction and helped him turn his career around. He was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame, the youngest person to ever be inducted, in 1980. He started collaborating and making music again from 1986-1993. He was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1992 and released two more albums by 1997.
Despite major health problems and the death of his wife in 2003, he continued to make music. One week after he finished recording his final album, he passed away from diabetes complications at the age of 71. Cash won 13 Grammys during his career. On June 28, 2024, an album of 11 unreleased songs came out posthumously. He had a series of posthumous albums released in 2006, 2010, and 2014.
#8 Avril Lavigne
- Albums Sold: 28.07 Million
- Net Worth: $60 Million
- Most Popular Songs: “Complicated,” “Sk8ter Boi,” “My Happy Ending,” “I’m With You,” “Nobody’s Home”
Avril Ramona Lavigne, nicknamed “The Punk Princess,” was born in Ontario, Canada on September 27, 1984. Besides being a musician, she also started her own fashion line, and a perfume line, is a voice actor, appeared in films, and is a philanthropist. She is known for her pop-punk-rock songs and being the face of grunge in the early 2000s, her multicolored hair, and her punk style.
Her parents were very strict Christians and monitored what she sang as a child. She sang in church choirs starting at the age of 2, learned to play the guitar, and started composing her own music when she was a teenager. She once aspired to be a country singer but changed her genre aspirations after high school.
She caught the eye of her first manager in 1999 at the age of 14 in a bookstore. That same year, she performed a duet with Shania Twain as the result of winning a singing contest. At the age of 16, she quit school, moved in with her brother in New York City, and signed a $1.25 million album contract. She relocated to Los Angeles and released her first album in 2002. Her first album went seven times platinum.
She released equally popular albums in 2004, 2007, 2011, and 2013. She was diagnosed with Lyme Disease and took a hiatus to recover from 2014-2018. By 2022, she released two more albums. She was sued in 2007 for her song, “Girlfriend,” for alleged plagiarism. The case was settled out of court. She has won 8 Grammys over the span of her career, among other awards.
She is the subject of a bizarre conspiracy theory that alleges she died in 2003 in a car accident after the release of her first album. It is said that she was replaced by body double, Melissa Vandella. The theory alleges that the proof is in appearance changes, the word “Melissa,” written on her hand in a photoshoot, and subliminal messaging in later songs. Vandella was hired as a body double to throw off the paparazzi. Lavigne has denied the conspiracy theory several times.
#7 Red Hot Chili Peppers
- Albums Sold: 120 Million
- Net Worth: $450 Million
- Most Popular Songs: “Californication,” “Scar Tissue,” “Give It Away,” “Under The Bridge,” “The Velvet Glove”
The punk rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers was formed in 1981 with original members Anthony Kiedis, Micheal “Flea” Balzary, Hillel Slovak, and Jack Iron under the band name Tony Flow and the Miraculously Majestic Masters of Mayhem. Their stage gimmick was wearing nothing but tube socks. They signed with EMI in 1983 and changed their name to Red Hot Chili Peppers. They hit commercial success with the release of their 1987 album, The Uplift Mofo Party Plan. Irons left the band and Slovak passed away from a heroin overdose. The band replaced them with John Frusciante and Chad Smith the same year.
Their next album, Mother’s Milk, achieved gold by 1990 and launched them into ultra-fame. Frusciante left the band in 2008 and was replaced by Josh Klinghoffer. By 2016, they had released 11 studio albums, were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and won a few Grammys. The Red Hot Chili Peppers is known for being pioneers in blending the punk, hip-hop, and funk genres, and their flamboyant performances.
#6 Stevie Wonder
- Albums Sold: 65 Million
- Net Worth: $200 Million
- Most Popular Songs: “Superstition,” “Higher Ground,” “Don’t You Worry ‘Bout a Thing”,” “Fingertips,” “Isn’t She Lovely”
Stevland Hardaway Judkins was born on May 13, 1950, in Michigan. He was born with the eye condition, retinopathy, and was 6 weeks premature. His condition led to blindness when he received too much oxygen in his intensive unit incubator. He was a child prodigy, and before the age of 10 sang in church choirs, and had taught himself how to play drums, piano, and the harmonica. Wonder released his first album when he was 11 after being discovered by Ronnie White. He auditioned with Berry Gordy Jr., founder of Motown, and signed a record deal.
In 1962, he used the stage name Little Stevie Wonder and he released 3 albums. He achieved his first No. 1 song, “Fingertips, Pt.2.” By 1968, Wonder had dropped “Little” from his stage name and had 3 of his songs reach No.1 on the R&B chart.
IN 1970, he renegotiated his contract with Motown, gained full artistic control of his work, and greatly increased his royalty profit margin. The 70s was Wonder’s most successful decade in his career. His songs started to contain political commentary and introspection. His song, “You Haven’t Done Nothin’,” was a direct critique against President Richard Nixon. He won 15 Grammys during this decade and produced his most popular project, Songs in the Key of Life, which is said to be one of the most important records of all time. He took a hiatus from 1995-2005 and then released his last album in 2005. He then worked on singles in 2016 and 2018.
In addition to his musical genius, Wonder is known for his advocacy work. He led the movement to recognize Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday as a national holiday and dedicated his Oscar to Nelson Mandela. He also performed on the charity single, “We Are the World,” which victims of famine in Africa, and on the song, “That’s What Friends Are For,” which benefited the American Foundation for AIDS Research. He was named a United Nations Messenger of Peace in 2009 for his lifelong advocacy for improving ADA services in 2009.
Wonder was married to his late first wife, Syreeta Wright, from 1970-1972. The two remained business collaborators and Wright died from cancer in 2004. He had two children with his partner, Yolanda Simmons in 1975 and 1977. He shared a third child with Melody McCulley in 1983, and two more children with an undisclosed woman. He had two sons with his second wife, Karen Millard Morris during their marriage from 2001-2015. He started a relationship with Tomeeka Robyn Bracy in 2012, had two children with her, and then married the then-42-year-old at the age of 67 in 2017. The couple is still married to this day. Bracy was born in 1975, the same year as his oldest child.
Stevie Wonder is highly decorated. Among his extensive list of awards, Wonder has won 2 Golden Globes, 1 Oscar, 23 Grammy Awards, 48 Grammy nominations, 1 NAACP Hall of Fame Award, 1 Peabody Award, A Hollywood Walk of Fame Star Winner, 11 American Music Awards, and was Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1989.
#5 Michael Jackson
- Albums Sold: 500 Million
- Net Worth: $1 Billion
- Most Popular Songs: “Thriller,” “Billie Jean,” “You Rock My World,” “Man In the Mirror,” “Heal the World,” “Smooth Criminal”
Michael Joseph Jackson is known as “The King of Pop,” and gained fame in The Jackson 5, as well as his own solo career. He was born in Gary, Indiana in 1958 and was the 8th of 10 children. He started performing at the age of 5 with his brothers. Jackson started pursuing his solo career on the side of Jackson 5 and released his first album in 1971 at the age of 13. He released 3 more albums by 1975.
He starred in his first film in 1977, and released his first solo album with Epic in 1979, which launched him into stardom. He achieved a Grammy for his single from that album, “Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough.” This album, Off the Wall, is considered his best album and one of the best pop albums ever made. He released 12 studio albums, 4 posthumous albums, 40 compilation albums, won 15 Grammy Awards, set 39 Guinness World Records, and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame multiple times.
His release of the album Thriller (1982) still holds the Guinness World Record for The Best-Selling Album of All Time. It sold 67 million copies globally, stayed on the Billboard charts for 80 weeks, won 8 Grammy Awards, and the “Thriller” music video was selected for the National Film Registry in 2009, the first music video to ever do so. Seven of the songs from the album achieved spots on the Top 10 Hits chart. He produced his final album in 2001, Invisible, which cost $30 million to produce, which is the most expensive album ever made. He debuted the moonwalk, his signature move in 1983.
Besides his musical stardom, Jackson was involved in several scandals. He was known for his experimentation with plastic surgery, and his skin condition vitiligo which dramatically lightened the color of his skin. He faced allegations of child sexual abuse, being known to have sleepovers with boys at his Neverland Ranch, and admitted to sleeping with children in his bed while being interviewed by British journalist Martin Bashir in 2003. He was arrested on 10 charges of abuse with a minor and subsequently acquitted of the charges in 2005. He faced intense criticism for dangling his infant son Blanket over a balcony in Berlin in 2002.
He was married to Elvis Presley’s daughter, Lisa Marie Presley from 1994-1996. He then was married to Debbie Rowe from 1996-1999. The couple had two children together, and Jackson maintained full custody after their divorce. He had a third child via surrogate in 2002.
Jackson died in 2009 at the age of 50 from a lethal drug overdose from a cocktail of sedatives. Jackson was aided by his physician, Dr. Conrad Murray, who was not licensed to prescribe controlled substances in California, to take sedatives for sleep. He administered the drug, Propofol every evening to Jackson, and was allegedly attempting to wean Jackson from his 50-milligram dose at the time of his death. Murray was convicted of involuntary manslaughter in 2011 and received a 4-year prison sentence.
#4 The Jackson 5
- Albums Sold: 150 Million
- Net Worth: $2 Million
- Most Popular Songs: “ABC,” “State of Shock,” “Santa Clause is Coming to Town,” “Never Can Say Goodbye”
The Jackson 5 was comprised of 5 Jackson children, Michael, Tito, Marlon, Jackie, and Jermain, The Jacksons’ musically inclined parents encouraged their children to pursue their own musical ambitions. Their father pressured them to be musical sensations and would physically abuse them if they got their dance steps wrong.
In the late 1960s, The Jackson 5 started gaining fame by opening for artists such as The Pips, Gladys Knight, and James Brown. The group was signed to Motown in 1969. The group moved to Los Angeles that year and moved in with Motown founder Berry Gordy and Diana Ross. They released two singles that hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart that year as well. They were so famous that the group had its own cartoon show from 1971-1972. The group severed ties with Motown in 1976, changed its name to The Jacksons, and signed with Epic Records.
Michael Jackson’s quick rise to fame in 1979 helped The Jacksons gain more fame as well, and their 1980 album, Triumph, sold over 1 million copies and took them on a successful global tour. The group’s last album was released in 1984.
#3 Whitney Houston
- Albums Sold: 25 Million
- Net Worth: $20 Million
- Most Popular Songs: “I Wanna Dance With Somebody,” “I Have Nothing,” “I Will Always Love You,” “When You Believe”
Whitney Elizabeth Houston was born in New Jersey on August 9, 1963. She performed with her mother, Cissy Houston, at New Hope Baptist Church as a child and young teen. She was discovered at the age of 15 by a photographer, started modeling, and was the first Black woman to appear on the cover of Seventeen. She was signed for a record deal at the age of 19 by Clive Davis. Her musical career officially started in 1983 when she appeared on The Merv Griffin Show.
She released her first album in 1985 and became a pop sensation. Her album was a chart-topper for 14 weeks. Houston won her first Grammy in 1986. She crossed over into acting in 1992 in the films The Bodyguard, Waiting to Exhale, and The Preacher’s Wife. She was named the most-awarded female artist of all time by Guinness World Records in 2006. She contributed to many soundtracks, especially for the films she acted in.
Her marriage to Bobby Brown starting in 1992 started a complicated and destructive period for Houston. The couple struggled with substance abuse, and Brown emotionally and physically abused Houston. With the production of their TV reality show, Being Bobby Brown, in 2004 the world could see how toxic their relationship was, and her reputation took a big hit. Her mother, Cissy stepped in and helped her daughter turn her life around. Houston took a hiatus, got a divorce in 2007, and gained custody of her daughter.
Houston passed away on February 11, 2012, at a Grammy party due to an accidental drowning. She was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2020, a hologram of her went on tour the same year. Two posthumous singles were released after her death. She won over 400 career awards with six Grammys and 22 AMAs.
#2 The Beatles
- Albums Sold: 600 Million
- Net Worth: $2.5 Billion
- Most Popular Songs: “I Want To Hold Your Hand,” “Black Bird,” “Let It Be,” “Yellow Submarine,” “Free as a Bird”
The Beatles AKA The Fab Four consisted of Ringo Starr, John Lennon, Paul McCartney, and George Harrison. The group formed in 1962 and broke up in 1970. They are considered to have changed the course of Rock & Roll as innovators, and the voice of Baby Boomers. They sang an array of genres including psychedelia, country, folk, and chamber ballads.
Beatlemania swept the globe. Through its 8-year span, The Beatles produces 12 studio albums, 63 singles, 53 music videos, and 51 compilation albums. The band won 9 Grammys, earned a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, won 1 American Music Award, and 1 Academy Award. The Beatles disbanded in 1970 over disagreements. All 4 members went on to produce solo music. McCartney was murdered in 1980 by a stalker in New York. His wife, Yoko Ono, landscaped a section of Central Park called Strawberry Fields, in his honor.
#1 Dolly Parton
- Albums Sold: 100 Million
- Net Worth: $650 Million
- Most Popular Songs: “Jolene,” “Stairway to Heaven,” “Tennessee Homesick Blues,” “You’re The Only One”
Dolly Parton, born Dolly Rebecca Parton, on January 19, 1946, in Locust Ridge Tennessee is an American Icon, National Treasure, actress, author, philanthropist, advocate, and activist. She was the 4th of 12 children in a self-described “dirt poor,” sharecropping family. She loved music as a child, singing in church, and learning to play guitar. She started performing professionally at age 10 on radio shows and debuted at the Grand Ole Opry when she was 13. She moved to Nashville the day after she graduated high school to pursue her music career.
Her career took off when she partnered with Porter Wagoner in 1967, as they recorded country hips together. She branched off in a solo career in 1971 and started scoring Country Chart Hits. Besides her successful music career, she started acting in 1980. She acted in movies such as 9 to 5, Steel Magnolias, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, and Joyful Noise. She also had her own variety show.
Parton is highly decorated, inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Songwriters Hall of Fame, won a Kennedy Center Honor, was the recipient of the Willie Nelson Lifetime Achievement Award, the Grammy Hall of Fame, 54 Grammy nominations, 2 Academy Award Nominations, and has been a member of the Grand Ole’ Opry for over 50 years.
Wanting to give back has been another defining factor of Parton’s career. She built a theme park near her home called Dolly Wood in order to bring jobs to the area. Her charitable foundations include the Dollywood Foundation, and Dolly’s Imagination Library, providing scholarships, donating to hospitals, and donating technology and supplies to local classrooms. She helped support the development of the Moderna Vaccine after donating $1 million to Vanderbilt University Medical Center, filmed herself receiving the vaccine, and urged the country to get vaccinated as well.
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