Harry Styles has paid tribute to country music icon Dolly Parton—who died this week—in the most reverent way possible.On Wednesday, Aug. 26, the former One Direction member pulled up to Madison Square Garden in New York City for his Together, Together tour. At one point during the show, he stopped to speak about the late music legend and how she “inspired” him.“I wanna say a proper ‘Thank you’ to all the musicians over the years that’ve inspired me. Dolly, we love you, thank you so much,” he said as the area began to roar with cheering. Almost immediately, Parton’s beloved song, “I Will Always Love You”, began playing.Harry Styles urged his fans to dance along to a classic Parton tune, as a tribute to the late music legendRather than covering the tune, or even singing along, Styles just allowed everyone present to listen to the song together and reflect on Parton’s legacy. Frankly, this was really the most honorable way to pay tribute to such an iconic artist. There’s nothing wrong with covering an artist who’s passed away. But there’s still something kind of vain about it? Like, making their death about you. I’m sure plenty of you will make it clear that I’m wrong in comment sections, DMs, and emails, but I believe that just allowing Dolly Parton’s song to play, and asking people to focus on that, was a very respectful way to honor her life and career.Dolly Parton passed away at the age of 80Styles’ tribute to Dolly Parton came one day after she passed away. On Aug. 25, 2026, Parton’s reps announced that she had passed away after a short illness. Parton’s nephew, Bryan Seaver, issued a video statement—on behalf of the Parton family—which was shared on social media.“This video announcement is something Dolly asked of me years ago, before I fully absorbed it as a future reality. As her head of security for more than two decades, a role my father Larry held before me, I have imagined the heaviness of this moment but haven’t truly felt it until now,” he said.Seaver then shared about his family living a “lifetime of beautiful memories” with his aunt. “Rest in peace, Aunt Dolly — Aunt, Granny, Gigi,” he concluded. “May God bless Dolly Parton, and may God bless you all. She will always love you.”Photo by Gareth Cattermole/Getty ImagesThe post Harry Styles Delivers a Beautifully Reverent Tribute to Dolly Parton at New York Concert appeared first on VICE.