Emotional reason why Dolly Parton kept her cancer battle a secret

olly Parton’s niece has explained why the country legend kept her cancer diagnosis out of public view.

Jada Star told Extra, in an interview shared on September 1, that privacy was exactly what her aunt wanted.

“She never wanted to worry anybody,” she said. Jada added that the family had deliberately kept those details to themselves.

That helps explain why the news landed so heavily worldwide, as fans had no idea how serious things had become. Dolly died on 25 August at the age of 80.

Jada Star says Dolly Parton’s death still shocked the family

Her relatives did know about the diagnosis and the health struggles behind the scenes. Even so, Jada admitted the loss came as a shock.

The world had lost a global icon, she said. The family had lost its matriarch.

“I can’t remember a life without her,” Jada added.

Dolly worked right up to the end, and she did it smiling.

Tributes to Dolly Parton helping her family through grief

The outpouring since her death has offered some comfort. Jada described the public reaction as bittersweet.

Seeing how much the whole world loved her aunt has been a beautiful opportunity, she said. All of those tributes have helped the family through the past week.

She also knows exactly what Dolly would be saying right now. Practical, funny and firm, as ever.

Jada joked that her aunt would tell the family to dry their tears and get back to work. She would also tell them to love each other hard and remembered her aunt fondly as great fun.

Jada Star’s Grand Ole Opry tribute to Dolly Parton

Jada honoured Dolly the only way that felt right. She sang.

She performed The Orchard as part of the Grand Ole Opry’s tribute on 29 August. Afterwards, she said she hoped her aunt would have been proud.

Nerves were nothing new, and neither was her aunt’s advice. Jada said Dolly had a different set of advice for every single person on earth.

“And for me, my advice I frequently got was, ‘Why are you worried about what other people think?'” she recalled.

Those words stayed with her on stage. Jada said she thought of them while performing, and she could feel her aunt’s light everywhere that night.