Kacey Musgraves Performs Dolly Parton Tribute at 2026 VMAs: Watch

Kacey Musgraves honored Dolly Parton through a tribute performance at the 2026 VMAs.

The annual awards show was held at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles on Sunday, Sept. 27. The tribute began with a video of Parton performing “I Will Always Love You” decades ago. Moments later, Musgraves joined in singing with Parton on screen. Musgraves donned a rhinestone pink gown. The performance ended with Parton previously saying “I will always love you, buh-bye.”

In addition to the performance, Musgraves was nominated for the Best Country Award for her single, “Dry Spell.” The tribute performance was the first time Musgraves returned to the VMAs stage since her performance of “Star Crossed” five years ago.

The Dolly Parton tribute came just weeks after Musgraves began publicly honoring the country music legend following her death on Aug. 25. The performance also continued a longstanding musical connection between the two artists that has included multiple awards-show tributes and performances of Parton’s songs.

Kacey Musgraves and Dolly Parton’s History

Prior to the VMAs, Musgraves honored Parton after her passing by performing “Here You Come Again” at her Boston concert on Aug. 28. During the performance at TD Garden, Musgraves first dedicated her own song “Rainbow” to Parton before launching into the 1977 country classic. Fans joined Musgraves in singing along to the song as images of Parton appeared during the tribute. When news of Parton’s death was announced, Musgraves wrote several posts on social media to share her shock and sadness. She even dubbed “doom-scrolling” as “Dolly-scrolling.”

Over the years, Parton and Musgraves’ paths have crossed several times. The duo performed “Here You Come Again” at the 2019 Grammy Awards. This was to honor Parton’s lasting legacy and hitmaking career. Musgraves covered the song during her CMT Crossroads episode with Katy Perry in 2014. She covered it once again at the 2019 MusiCares Person of the Year gala. Musgraves and Parton also paid tribute to Parton in 2016 during the CMA Awards when Parton accepted the Willie Nelson Lifetime Achievement Award.