Dolly Parton Won't Force You to Get the Covid Shot, But at Least Mask Up

(Bloomberg) -- Music legend Dolly Parton has been a staunch advocate for vaccination against Covid-19 -- even helping to fund the Moderna shot through a $1 million donation to Vanderbilt University Medical Center for coronavirus research.

Still, the iconic singer, songwriter and philanthropist is influential to a broad group of fans. Her latest venture, a line of Duncan Hines desserts from Conagra Brands Inc., sold out in less than five minutes, the company said. Parton won’t use her popularity to implore people to get vaccinated if they’re opposed -- but she will tell them to mask up.

“When I got my vaccination and showed people, ‘don’t be a chicken squat, get on out and get your shot,’ I just assumed everybody was in line waiting to get the shot. And then I found out a lot of people, for religious reasons, personal reasons, health reasons, did not want to get it, so I’m not one to tell people to do that,” she said in an interview with Bloomberg. Currently, 62.8% of Americans -- and only 51.9% in Parton’s home state of Tennessee -- are fully vaccinated in the U.S., according to Bloomberg data.

“But I will tell you, you need to wear your mask, because we’ve gotta be as safe as we can.”

The 76-year-old’s place as a fixture in pop culture has led her to new business partnerships outside healthcare, from cooking products to fragrances. On Tuesday, she debuted Southern-style desserts with Duncan Hines. Two flavors of mixes, Coconut Cake and Banana Puddin’ Cake, and two buttercream frostings went on sale online Wednesday morning. The 1,400 available boxes sold out in less than five minutes, a Conagra spokesperson said.

“As you get older and you build up a brand and call it your name, you can sell a lot of stuff, but I only want to do it if it’s good stuff,” Parton said. “I spent my whole life with Duncan Hines. We all make cakes and act like they were ours, knowing good and well that they belong to Duncan Hines.”

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