{"id":2186931,"date":"2026-10-09T05:11:16","date_gmt":"2026-10-09T02:11:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2186931"},"modified":"2026-10-09T05:11:16","modified_gmt":"2026-10-09T02:11:16","slug":"why-did-country-singer-dolly-parton-recorded-jolene-in-welsh","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2186931","title":{"rendered":"Why did country singer Dolly Parton recorded Jolene in Welsh?"},"content":{"rendered":"

[analyse_image type=”featured” src=”https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/1024\/branded_news\/5769\/live\/8b18a8e0-c35d-11f1-9b27-99a8a0976ecc.jpg”]<\/p>\n

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\"JasonJason Kempin\/Getty<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Dolly’s niece Jada Star and Welsh singer-songwriter Bronwen Lewis say the country star was “proud” to sing in Welsh<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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A Welsh language collaboration between Dolly Parton, her niece Jada Star and singer-songwriter Bronwen Lewis might not have been on your bingo card for this year.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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But their cover of smash-hit Jolene, with Welsh and English lyrics, has been released on Friday.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The song, recorded before Parton’s death on 25 August, is her second posthumous single.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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A teaser video released last week shows how Parton spent some time understanding the phonetics of Lewis’ translation and recorded her parts at her studio in Nashville in early 2025.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Lewis, a proud Welsh speaker from Neath, started translating some of her favourite tunes in 2024, landed on the Parton classic and recorded a video of herself singing it.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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“I never expected it would go viral and definitely didn’t expect it to attract the attention of Dolly’s family – especially her niece Jada,” Lewis said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Star, also a singer-songwriter, came over to Wales from Nashville and bonded instantly with BBC Radio Wales’ Lewis. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The teaser revealed it was Star’s suggestion to record Jolene in Welsh, as she would get her aunt involved too.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Star and Lewis said Parton, who has links to Machynlleth in Powys, was “proud” to sing in Welsh.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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On the track, Parton recites that “heartbreak sounds the same in every language”.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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