Good golly, it’s Miss Dolly shredding the guitar in a leather rhinestone jacket. Despite initially refusing her induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame due to believing she “didn’t earn that right†— refusal that was, we should note, shrugged off by the institution — Dolly Parton closed the 2022 ceremony by accepting her fate as America’s newest high priestess of the genre. “I’m a rock star now!†she declared from the podium. “Back when they said they were going to induct me into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, I didn’t really think that I’d done enough to deserve that. I didn’t understand it at the time. But this is a very, very special night for me.†Reiterating a good-faith promise from earlier this year, Parton confirmed that her next album will be based strictly in rock music as opposed to her country roots, and debuted its frisky first song, “Rockin.†“My husband is a huge rock fan and he’s always said ‘you should do it,’†she noted. “But if I’m gonna be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, I’m gonna have to earn it.â€
Parton’s segment, the last of the evening, buoyed the ceremony into a “super jam†performance that featured some of the other inductees. Singing “Jolene†alongside Parton included Pat Benatar, Annie Lennox, Simon Le Bon, and Judas Priest’s Rob Halford, who cheerfully proclaimed during his speech that he was “the gay guy in the group.†(Bruce Springsteen and John Mellencamp followed with another “super jam†of their own, performing “Great Balls of Fire†in remembrance of Jerry Lee Lewis. Or Top Gun, if you can’t stand Lewis for obvious reasons.) You’ll have to wait until the ceremony airs on HBO later this month to behold Halford snuggling and Lennox wearing a cowboy hat, but we think the photos will suffice.
More From This Year's Rock Hall...
- Pat Benatar on the Most Defiant and Empowering Music of Her Career
- The Highs, Lows, and Whoas of the 2022 Rock Hall Induction Ceremony
- Alanis Morissette Says She Quit Rock Hall Performance Over Sexist Production