Katy Perry mourns Dolly Parton at LA screening: 'Her star will forever shine bright'

Dolly Parton died at 80 on Tuesday. Katy Perry spoke at length about Parton's influence at the first West Coast screening of her concert documentary, Katy Perry: The Lifetimes Tour — Live From Paris, held at AMC The Grove 14 in Los Angeles. Perry described Parton as "an earth angel" and a model for how to live.

The tribute came during a nearly 30-minute Q&A moderated by Billboard's Tetris Kelly after the film's rousing finale. Perry had surprised the audience by sneaking in a side entrance during the closing number, "Firework," and dancing with fans beneath the screen. The tour comprised 91 shows across five continents from April 23 to December 7, 2025.

Perry had shared stages with Parton at the Grammy Awards in 2019 and the 51st Academy of Country Music Awards in 2016. Katy Perry said: "She was such a light. Her light ripples and will forever ripple, and will shine even brighter now. And all the philanthropic work that she does and all the young kids' literacy that she's done with sending books to pre-schoolers, I don't know if everyone knows how mega that is. I got to spend some time with her, and she was so wickedly funny. It was amazing. It didn't seem like she ever had a bad day, and if anything, she would just make a little joke about it. She was an earth Perry's remarks echoed a written tribute she posted to Instagram earlier in the day, in which she said her "heart sank" upon hearing the news.

Perry recalled a missed opportunity to have Parton join her 2015 Super Bowl halftime show. Parton had sent a sweet note via fax after declining, Perry wrote. Producer Daniel Catullo encouraged the audience to film the movie, beach balls were tossed during up-tempo songs, and Perry joined fans for a dance party.

Katy Perry: The Lifetimes Tour – Live from Paris opens in cinemas and IMAX globally across 70 countries on September 2 via Trafalgar Releasing. The 132-minute film captures two sold-out shows in Paris from November 2025 and marks Perry's first concert documentary. On Wednesday night, the singer's tone was less playful, focused on Parton's legacy as a philanthropist and a figure who defied stereotypes.