Music
Dolly Parton never really knows how a song is going to be received until she performs it for people and she can see it on their faces. When she sang this 2012 song, she was delighted at how 'moved' her audience was.
Published on November 16, 2021
2 min readDolly Parton has always been open about her close relationship with God. She says her greatest songs are all thanks to him. In her 2020 book, Dolly Parton, Songteller: My Life in Lyrics, the “Light of a Clear Blue Morning” singer writes about one song of hers that “moved so many.” She was so touched by the reception that she wished she could give her inspiration a spirited high-five.
Dolly Parton’s ‘He’s Everything’
The song Parton was referring to was “He’s Everything,” which she wrote for the Joyful Noise soundtrack. The Queen of Country sang the song with her co-star Queen Latifah. The song is about praising God and noticing him in everything.
“In everything, He plays a part. Heals and mends our broken hearts, restores us when we fall apart, ’cause He’s everything.”
Dolly Parton thinks ‘He’s Everything’ is ‘one of my better songs’
The “Jolene” singer has written over 5,000 songs. Some of them are closer to Parton’s heart than others.
“I think [‘He’s Everything’] is one of my better songs,” she wrote. “I love to write songs that are simple but have a feeling in them that allows them to grow big, with an orchestra or a choir.”
Parton knew she’d really done something special when she performed “He’s Everything” on the set of Joyful Noise along with Queen Latifah.
“I remember filming Joyful Noise in that church that day,” she wrote. “They had a lot of extras and a lot of people there. I remember being so touched that the song moved so many of them. They weren’t told to cry. They weren’t told to react in any certain way. They were just being part of the movie. But I saw that they were really moved. That made me just want to ‘high-five’ God for giving me the inspiration to write something like that.”
“Every day, I ask God to let me uplift people, to glorify Him,” she continued. “I want people to feel and see Him through me. I saw that in my song that day, and I felt really humbled by that.”
‘Joyful Noise’
Joyful Noise, directed by Todd Graff, debuted Jan. 13, 2012. It earned $31.2 million in the box office. The movie focuses on the townspeople of Pacashau, Ga., who have fallen on hard times. But the Divinity Church Choir has the opportunity to compete in a national competition, instilling hope in the people of Pacashau. However, the two lead singers, Vi Rose (Queen Latifah) and G.G. (Parton) can’t agree on the style of the performance. Vi wants to go a traditional route while G.G. thinks a more modern performance will hold the key to victory. The singers must work together to find the perfect piece.
Parton writes that Joyful Noise is one of her favorite movies she’s ever filmed: “I loved being in Atlanta to film it, loved the singers in the choir, and loved working with Queen Latifa.”
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