Dolly Parton Dresses as Dallas Cowboys Cheerleader for Thanksgiving Day Halftime Performance

Dolly Parton’s Thanksgiving Day performance was worthy of a touchdown! The country icon took the stage at the Salvation Army’s 27th annual Red Kettle Kickoff Halftime Show during the Dallas Cowboys and Washington Commanders football game on Thursday, November 23.

Fans were buzzing after Dolly, 77, emerged on the stage wearing a Dallas Cowboys cheerleader outfit. “Hey Cowboys and Commanders, stop fighting and sing along with me,” she told the crowd after they erupted in cheers over her look.

She launched into a medley of her biggest hits, including “Jolene” and “9 to 5,” during the appearance at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

“She looks amazing, right? She’s wonderful. Who doesn’t like Dolly Parton?” former NFL quarterback Tony Romo said during the CBS broadcast, to which cohost Jim Nantz replied, “She is absolutely an American treasure, that’s for sure.”

In addition to performing some of her country classics, the Grammy winner covered Queen’s “We Are the Champions” and “We Will Rock You.” This year, Dolly decided to channel a whole new side of herself, releasing her first ever rock album, Rockstar, on November 17. Included in the album’s tracklist are her renditions of Sting’s “Every Breath You Take,” Pat Benatar’s “Heartbreaker,” Prince’s “Purple Rain” and more.

Just as Dolly released Rockstar, she already had begun working on her next big project.

“I’m doing my life story as a Broadway musical,” the songstress told USA Today in an interview published on November 17. “I’ve written the music and am recording it now. The script is done, so it’s more about the music and starting to cast. So my next big album will probably be my cast album. I don’t have any plans to record any other music, but I’m doing some songs for several country artists. I did another song with Zach Williams and maybe I’ll get to work with some rockers and do some rock songs on their albums.”

Dolly has proven time and time again that her music is timeless and transcends generations. After more than 56 years in the music industry, the Tennessee native has no plans of slowing down any time soon.

“I always believed that if you wanted your dreams to come true and you are lucky enough to have that happen, then you’ve got to be responsible because you got to keep the dream alive — and every dream kind of spawns another dream,” she said during a July 13 interview with Ken Bruce on Greatest Hits Radio. “You can branch off of almost anything that happens and make a business out of that, as well. It’s kind of like a tree with good roots, and it’s got a lot of limbs, and it’s also got a lot of leaves, so why not make the most of it?”