Dolly Parton says she will accept Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Induction if voted in

NME

Dolly Parton has reversed her stance on being inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame and said she will accept the honour should she be voted in.

The country icon is among the shortlist for this year’s inductees, alongside the likes of Eminem, Kate Bush, Beck, Eurythmics, Duran Duran, Lionel Richie, Rage Against The Machine, A Tribe Called Quest, Carly Simon, Judas Priest, Fela Kuti, New York Dolls, Dionne Warwick, MC5, Devo and Pat Benatar.

• READ MORE: Dolly Parton – ‘Run, Rose, Run’ album review: a fun, easy-going romp with lashings of charm

Last month (March 14), Parton shared a statement saying that, while she was “extremely flattered and grateful” to be in the running, she didn’t feel that she had “earned the right”. “I really do not want votes to be split because of me, so I must respectfully bow out,” she wrote.

However, the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame has not removed the musician’s name from the ballot. In an interview on NPR’s Morning Edition earlier today (April 29), the star was asked what she would do if she still received enough votes to enter her into the hall of fame.

“Well, I’ll accept gratefully,” she replied. “I will say ‘thanks’ and accept that.”

She continued to explain that, at the time she made her statement bowing out, she hadn’t realised that the institution already included numerous artists from other genres outside the world of rock. “When I said that, it was always my belief that the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame was for the people in rock music,” she said.

“And I have found out lately it’s not necessarily that. But if they can’t go there to be recognised, where do they go? And so I felt like I would be taking away from someone that maybe deserved it, certainly more than me since I never considered myself a rock artist. But obviously, there’s more to it than that.”

The 2022 Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame inductees will be announced in May, followed by an induction ceremony held in October.

Fellow nominee Devo’s Mark Mothersbaugh told NME earlier this month he had cast his vote for Parton, despite her saying she didn’t want to be considered. “I think she has as much right as a rapper would – she has every right to be there,” he said. “Her music, whether she knows it or not, has a lot of rock elements in it.”

In her earlier statement, the country star had expressed her wish to make a “hopefully great rock ‘n’ roll album at some point in the future”. Revered producer Steve Albini, who has worked with the likes of Nirvana, Pixies, The Stooges, PJ Harvey and more, appeared to suggest that he would be interested in working with her.

“Dolly Parton do you like analog recording,” he tweeted in response to the statement, referring to his preferred method of working.

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