Dolly Parton & Miley Cyrus Gushed About Their "Wrecking Ball" Duet

— NBC/NBCUniversal/Getty Images
When Miley Cyrus and Dolly Parton kicked off 2023 together as co-hosts of Miley’s New Year’s Eve Party, fans predicted it would be a good year. The goddaughter and godmother’s duet to “Wrecking Ball” was such a standout moment that it inspired cries for a studio version. Now, those wishes have come true, and after “Wrecking Ball ft. Miley Cyrus” dropped on Oct. 19, the two superstar singers celebrated with heartfelt praise for one another.

Parton honored Cyrus’ original version of the 2013 song in a video she posted to her social media on Oct. 20. She likened hearing it for the first time to when she first heard Whitney Houston’s “I Will Always Love You.” Both times, Parton happened to be driving and was so moved that she “almost wrecked.” The “Wrecking Ball” chorus, in particular, made her think, “Well, how great can a song be?,” she said.

When Parton decided to make her much-anticipated rock album, Rockstar, she decided to cover it. “I thought, I have to have that song on my rock album and I have to have Miley sing it with me!” the country music icon noted in her Instagram caption.

The Gushing Is Mutual

Cyrus was all for the collaboration. “I’ve grown up covering my Aunt Dollys [sic] music & it’s an honor to hear her singing one of my songs,” she wrote on Instagram, adding in part, “You can hear so much sweetness and love on this record.”

— Miley Cyrus/Instagram“Aunt Dolly” saw Cyrus’ post and replied in the comments to tell her how much their close relationship means to her. “We always say such sweet things about one another, but you are especially good to me, Miley!” she wrote. “I know sometimes it sounds gushy to people like it is false and not real but it truly is real. I just love what you said about our ‘Wrecking Ball’ duet and I feel the same!”

Parton further sang her goddaughter’s praises, even calling her “the most gifted person” that she knows. “I want to say again how proud I am of the record but more than anything how proud I am of you and our relationship,” she added.

A Rockstar Connection

The two artists’ strong bond is well-documented. Among their most memorable collaborations were Parton’s guest appearances on Cyrus’ Disney sitcom, Hannah Montana, in the early 2000s, their 2017 duet “Rainbowland” (with Parton’s real voicemail for her goddaughter) and, of course, their 2023 New Year’s Eve show.

“She is the best,” the “Jaded” singer told Jimmy Fallon on The Tonight Show about working with her godmother in December 2022. “It is, like, unparalleled how gracious she is in every single room that she is in.”

Parton clearly feels the same way. For her Rockstar era, she sought fashion advice from Cyrus. “My friend Miley, she gave me some suggestions about things,” Parton told Mo Heart for Amazon Music’s Walk In series. Between Cyrus’ ideas and help from her own longtime creative director, Steve Summers, Parton found the balance between being “as sexy as [she] could be at [her] age” and still “in good taste.”

Listen to Parton and Cyrus’ “Wrecking Ball” duet below.

Dolly Parton’s Rockstar is out on Nov. 17.