Does Dolly Parton Wear Gloves? Halftime Show Appearance Explained

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NFL and music fans alike praised Dolly Parton's halftime performance on Sunday, but some noticed an interesting detail about her costume.

The country music star, 77, wore a bedazzled cheerleader outfit complete with shorts and a crop top over a sparkly skin-colored bodysuit to perform during halftime of the game between the Dallas Cowboys and Washington Commanders.

But some eagle-eyed viewers noticed Parton's bodysuit also extended to her hands and it appeared she was wearing fingerless skin-colored gloves.

dolly parton
Dolly Parton performs music during halftime of an NFL game between the Dallas Cowboys and the Washington Commanders on November 23, 2023 in Arlington, Texas. Some fans noticed the singer was wearing gloves during the... Kevin Sabitus/Getty Images North America

"Ever since I learned of Dolly Parton's gloves and that they are meant to just look like younger hands, I can't unsee them," wrote one person on X, formerly Twitter.

Others praised Parton's halftime performance.

"You know who's a national treasure? #DollyParton. That's who," posted one person.

And a second commented: "@DollyParton— ♥️Legendary and absolutely FABULOUS!"

Speculation has long existed over Parton's use of skin-colored gloves, with her creative director Steve Summers explaining the reasoning behind.

"People always ask why she always wears sleeves—well, she's 73 years old, and she doesn't like her elbows," he told InStyle in 2019. "[They ask] 'What's wrong with her hands?' She's 73, and she doesn't like them. It's a normal woman thing."

Parton also addressed the chat about her hands, revealing she has tattoos to cover up scar tissue on her hands.

"I don't really like to make a big to-do of [the tattoos] because people make such a big damn deal over every little thing," she said in a 2017 interview with Vanity Fair.

"But most of the tattoos, when I first started, I was covering up some scars that I had, 'cause I have a tendency to have keloid scar tissue, and I have a tendency where if I have any kind of scars anywhere, then they kind of have a purple tinge that I can never get rid of. So mine are all pastels, what few that I have, and they're meant to cover some scars. I'm not trying to make some big, bold statement."

Parton recently chatted to Newsweek in an exclusive interview and opened up on her honesty around getting cosmetic procedures.

"Those kinds of things are not embarrassing to me. I've done it. I'll do it again. I'm just open about it. It's some of my best comedy," she told Newsweek.

"My life's pretty open. I have my inner secrets and inner space that nobody can touch, but I'm open as far as what people need to know and what I'd like them to know about me."

About the writer

Shannon Power is a Greek-Australian reporter, but now calls London home. They have worked as across three continents in print, newspapers and broadcast, specializing in entertainment, politics, LGBTQ+ and health reporting. Shannon has covered high profile celebrity trials along with industry analysis of all the big trends in media, pop culture and the entertainment business generally. Shannon stories have featured on the cover of the Newsweek magazine and has been published in publications such as, The Guardian, Monocle, The Independent, SBS, ABC, Metro and The Sun. You can get in touch with Shannon by email at s.power@newsweek.com and on X @shannonjpower. Languages: English, Greek, Spanish.



Shannon Power is a Greek-Australian reporter, but now calls London home. They have worked as across three continents in print, ... Read more