Kacey Musgraves Performs Dolly Parton's "I Will Always Love You" at 2026 VMAs

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Watch Kacey Musgraves Sing Dolly Parton’s “I Will Always Love You” at the 2026 VMAs

Musgraves has also been covering the late country icon's songs on tour By Hattie Lindert September 27, 2026 Save this story Save this story

Kacey Musgraves took to the VMAs stage on Sunday to deliver a tribute to Dolly Parton , who died last month at the age of 80. You can watch her sing “I Will Always Love You” below.

Since Parton’s death on August 25, Musgraves has covered the late icon’s music at multiple stops on her Middle of Nowhere tour, tackling the 1977 hit “Here You Come Again” at a show in Boston and “9 to 5” at Madison Square Garden. “I’m not over it, and I’m never gonna be over it,” Musgraves said during the latter performance. “The world definitely lost a light, and it’s hard for me to talk about.”

Musgraves is up for Best Country Music Video this year for the visual accompanying her Middle of Nowhere track “Dry Spell.” Although she has never won a VMA, she’s been nominated twice before: for Best Longform Video and Best Art Direction for 2022s Star Crossed: The Film .

Revisit Lily Goldberg’s Saturday Track review of Dolly Parton’s “ I Will Always Love You .”

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Hattie Lindert is an associate staff writer at Pitchfork. A former editor at Resident Advisor , she has written for Rolling Ston e, The FACE and The A.V. Club , among others. She’s based in New York, and born and raised in Vermont. ... Read More Contributor -

_Originally reported by [Pitchfork](https://pitchfork.com/story/watch-kacey-musgraves-sing-dolly-partons-i-will-always-love-you-at-the-2026-vmas/)._