Culture 4 min read By Morgan Griffin
Nashville Airport Board Votes Unanimously to Rename Terminal After Dolly Parton
The Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority board voted 6-0 to begin renaming Nashville International Airport in honor of the late country icon, with the final name to be decided alongside the Dollywood Foundation.
Nashville International Airport is moving forward with plans to rename itself in honor of Dolly Parton, after the Metropolitan Nashville Airport Authority board of commissioners voted unanimously to begin the process. The 6-0 vote on Friday marks the first formal step toward attaching the late country star's name to the Tennessee travel hub.
The airport authority said the final name has not been settled and that officials are «working closely with the appropriate parties to thoughtfully determine how Dolly Parton's name and legacy will be incorporated.» The board described the vote as «the first step in a multifaceted process,» with more detailed plans expected in the coming months. The final wording will be decided jointly by airport leaders and the Dollywood Foundation, the nonprofit Parton established in 1988.
The push to rename the airport predates Parton's death. A petition calling for «Dolly Parton International Airport» was launched in early 2025, and support widened after her passing. Republican Governor Bill Lee proposed the change shortly after her death, and Nashville's Democratic Mayor Freddie O'Connell backed it, giving the effort rare bipartisan momentum in a divided political moment.
«At a place where Tennessee welcomes the world, it is fitting that Nashville International Airport would bear the name of our state's favourite daughter,» Lee said in an initial statement.
News of Parton's death emerged last month, with her cause of death later revealed as a «brief battle with cancer.» She had previously told fans she was «dealing with some health issues that I just didn't pay attention to» while caring for her late husband, Carl Dean, but the public was not aware of her cancer diagnosis.
Parton's relatives confirmed that her funeral took place in a private ceremony at Nashville's Woodlawn Memorial Park, where fellow country stars Porter Wagoner, George Jones and Tammy Wynette are also buried. Her estate has also confirmed the inaugural edition of DollyFest, a two-day event in Nashville and London. The festival, which had been planned for this January before her health struggles intervened, will celebrate her legacy «instead of a traditional public memorial.»
Tributes have continued to arrive from across the music world. Kacey Musgraves performed «Here You Come Again» in Boston, while Maisie Peters covered the same song at Reading Festival. Jack White played «Jolene» at a London show, Orville Peck delivered a rendition of «I Will Always Love You,» and Olivia Rodrigo dedicated her duet with Sarah McLachlan at Daisy Chain Fields to the late singer.
The airport renaming adds a permanent civic marker to a career that made Parton one of Tennessee's most recognizable global exports. Her name already adorns the Dollywood theme park in Pigeon Forge and a wide range of charitable initiatives, including the Imagination Library, which mails books to children. The airport authority's decision signals that Nashville intends to make her part of the city's identity for travelers arriving and departing for years to come.
For now, the airport continues to operate under its existing name while the authority and the Dollywood Foundation work out the specifics. The board's unanimous vote gives the effort a clear mandate, but the exact form the tribute will take — and how soon it appears on signage, tickets and flight listings — remains to be determined in the months ahead.
