Harry Styles Pays Tribute to Dolly Parton at Madison Square Garden Opening Night

We will always love Dolly Parton. Harry Styles made certain of that, when he paid tribute to the late country music superstar during the first night of his residency at Madison Square Garden, the start of an unprecedented stretch of 30 consecutive shows at the storied arena. 

The British pop artist gave the best possible salute to Dolly by playing her recording of “I Will Always Love You” on the MSG speakers.

The former One Direction star thanked his band and gave a “special thanks to all the musicians who have inspired me over the years.” Of course, Parton was high on that list. “Dolly, thank you so much,” he remarked.

Styles went on to play two verses and choruses of the song, originally released in 1974, and told the crowd to sing along on the first chorus. The audio then faded out, say people who were in the arena, and segued to his solo hit “Sign Of The Times.”

Dolly, perhaps the greatest country music artist of all time, an inductee into the Rock And Roll Hall of Fame and the Country Music Hall of Fame, and the writer of more than 3,000 songs, died Tuesday (Aug. 25) at the age of 80.

Parton was named Billboard’s Top Country Artist of All Time, having landed 25 No. 1s on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart, the most of any woman, and 49 top 10s on Billboard’s Country Albums chart. An all-rounder with a heart of gold, Dolly will also be remembered for her philanthropy, her acting roles, her business acumen and her support of good causes.

The Tennessee native co-owned Dollywood, a theme park located in her hometown of Pigeon Forge, Tenn., and she operated the Imagination Library — a program that mails free books to children from birth until they first begin school. The late star had also been a co-owner of Sandollar Productions alongside her former manager, Sandy Gallin, which produced Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Father of the Bride and Sabrina, among others.

New York is Styles’ current tour’s first and only stop in the United States, after having previously stopped in Amsterdam, London, São Paulo and Mexico City for a combined 31 dates across July and August.