Dolly Parton: 'My poor childhood made me who I am'

Country music star Dolly Parton has never been ashamed of her poor upbringing.

The 69-year-old grew up in a one-room cabin in Sevier County, Tennessee with her parents and 11 siblings, and having such a large family meant money was extremely tight and some of her early songs, including Coat of Many Colors, document the hard times they went through.

But despite such poverty, Dolly insists she wouldn't change anything about her childhood, as it's made her appreciate the life she has now.

"I think my childhood made me everything I am today," she told Entertainment Tonight. "I would trade nothing for being brought up in the Great Smoky Mountains. I've never been ashamed of my people, no matter how poor or dirty we might have been. I've always loved being from where I am, and having the folks that I've had."

Dolly took her first tentative steps into showbiz as a child performer on the Cas Walker Radio Show before moving to Nashville when she was 18, and finding work as a songwriter.

Eventually she found success as a solo artist and has gone on to have huge hits around the world with tracks including Islands in the Stream, 9 to 5 and I Will Always Love You, but despite the wealth that has come with her achievements, Dolly will never forget her humble beginnings.

"It's made me what I am," she added. "It's that spiritual base; it's that family; love of family; it's just that simple life, feeling like part of nature."

Dolly's life is being turned into upcoming TV movie, Dolly Parton's Coat of Many Colors, named after the star's favourite song.
The movie is neither "a biopic nor a musical about Dolly's whole life and performing career, but rather a family-oriented faith-based story about the incidents in her and her family's life around the time she was nine years old."