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Elle King is under fire for her performance at the Grand Ole Opry Friday night during a Dolly Parton tribute concert celebrating the country legend’s 78th birthday.
The singer-songwriter, and daughter of actor-comedian Rob Schneider, was caught on video from multiple angles performing what fans thought was a tasteless cover of Parton’s “Marry Me.”
During the performance, according to one TikTok videothe “Worth A Shot” singer admitted onstage she didn’t know the words to the song: “I don’t know the lyrics to these things in this (expletive) town/Don’t tell Dolly ’cause it’s her birthday.” Addressing the audience, she said: “I’m not even gonna (expletive) lie … y’all bought tickets for this (expletive), you ain’t getting your money back.”
“I don’t want it,” one fan could be heard shouting back. “Good, ’cause you ain’t getting it,” King replied.
More:Dolly Parton talks new memoir, Broadway musical and being everybody’s ‘favorite aunt’
Then, she added: “I’ll tell you one thing more … hi, my name is Elle King. I’m (expletive) hammered.” According to TikTok user @jamiek721King cursed over a dozen times at the Ryman Auditorium Friday where children were also in attendance.
At a different point during her stint onstage, someone else suggested King perform one of her songs. She responded, “I can barely play another person’s song, let me see if I can play one of mine.”
Parton celebrated her 78th birthday on Jan. 19 with several events honoring the country star in Nashville, Tennesse. One of those was a night at the Grand Ole Opry dedicated to Parton, with performances from Terri Clark, Elle King, Tigirlily Gold, Ashley Monroe, Dailey and Vincent and more.
Singer Lauren Alaina was also slated to perform Friday night, but according to the Grand Ole Opry on X, “due to unforeseen circumstances, @Lauren_Alaina will no longer be appearing on tonight’s ‘Opry Goes Dolly’ shows.”
More:Dolly Parton celebrates her birthday with a bonus edition of her ‘Rockstar’ album
In response, an X user replied with a complaint about King’s performance.
“I wish she would’ve been there because Elle King ruined the night with her horrible, drunk, and profane performance. Dolly Parton would’ve been mortified. For our first time at The Opry, it was a shame we all had to witness that,” the user wrote.
To which the Grand Ole Opry responded: “Hi Judas, we deeply regret and apologize for the language that was used during last night’s second Opry performance.”
King has not addressed the performance yet.
