Dolly Parton Is One Of The Richest Self-Made Women in America
She's still priceless to us!
It the world of country music, Dolly Parton is without doubt a priceless commodity. But fans have long wondered about the dollars and cents this legend of music and business has made.
She’s spent decades making decisions that have turned out to be very lucrative — like not giving Elvis Presley 50 percent of “I Will Always Love You,” or re-investing her riches into her hometown community — and because of that, has been able to do things like donate $1 million to help create the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine. Until now, though, no one knew how much she was worth.
In recent reporting by Forbes, which decided to research the richest self-made women in America, Parton’s net worth is estimated to be around $350 million — making her one of the richest musicians on the planet.
In true Dolly Parton fashion, it turns out that part of her success is an investment portfolio that’s just as diverse as the best Wall Street hedge fund manager. Music, of course, plays a big role. Parton’s 3,000 song catalog “reportedly brings in between $6 million and $8 million in royalty payments each year,” with Forbes estimating its total value at about $150 million.
But Parton is also invested in filmmaking, consumer products like her new perfume, and crucially, her Dollywood theme park.
According to Forbes, Parton partnered with Herschend Family Entertainment to transform their sleepy East Tennessee amusement park, Silver Dollar City, into Dollywood back in 1986. It is now Tennessee’s most-visited tourist attraction, drawing about 3 million visitors a year. And Parton’s 50 percent stake is worth about $165 million.
Forbes now ranks Dolly Parton as the 86th richest self-made woman in America, ahead of celebrities like Cindy Crawford (#100), and you can read more about her fortune here.
