Willie Geist Revisits His Interviews With Dolly Parton After Her Death
The anchor reflects on Dollywood visit and the singer's lasting impact on music.
Following the death of Dolly Parton, Sunday TODAY anchor Willie Geist shared a look back at his interviews with the singer over the years, revisiting moments that captured her personality on and off camera. The segment draws together footage from multiple sit-downs he had with Parton throughout his time covering her career.
Among the highlights, Geist recalled being given a personal tour of Dollywood, the Tennessee theme park closely associated with Parton's legacy. Their conversations also touched on her upbringing in the mountains of East Tennessee, details that shaped her music and public persona over the decades.
The interviews also included Parton reflecting on her broader impact on the music industry, offering her own perspective on a career that made her known widely as the Queen of Country. Geist's collection of clips gives viewers a sense of how those conversations evolved across his various encounters with her.
Taken together, the compilation serves as a tribute built directly from Geist's own reporting archive, rather than secondhand recollection, allowing Parton's own words from Dollywood and her reflections on her rural roots to anchor the remembrance.
