Dolly Parton has shared heartfelt words of comfort for Kelly Clarkson and Reba McEntire as they mourn the death of Brandon Blackstock. The country music legend, who has faced her own recent loss, urged her friends to focus on cherishing the good memories and the love they shared.
Blackstock, who was Kelly Clarkson’s ex-husband and Reba McEntire’s former stepson, died on August 7 at the age of 48 after a battle with melanoma. His passing has left a deep void in the lives of his family and friends, and those close to him have begun to pay tribute to the man they loved.
Parton, 79, reflected on her own grief following the death of her husband, Carl Thomas Dean, earlier this year at the age of 82. Speaking to Entertainment Tonight, she offered gentle advice drawn from her personal experience.
“I think you just have to be grateful for the years that you’ve had with someone,” Parton said. “And you just try to remember the very best of all that. And take their energy that they had given you then and kinda just recycle that and let that become a part of you. Just honor their memory.”
Blackstock, a former music manager who later dedicated himself to working as a full-time rancher, is survived by his children, including his 18-year-old son, Seth, from his first marriage to Melissa Ashworth Wells. Seth shared an emotional tribute on Instagram, calling his father his “hero” and “best friend.”
“I lost my hero yesterday,” Seth wrote, per Yahoo. “Words can’t describe how proud of you I am on raising me and your 3 other kids. You were a father, a son, a brother, and most importantly my best friend.”
He went on to speak about the bond they shared and the lessons his father had passed down to him. “You’ll have to watch me grow up from a bird’s-eye view now but that’s OK with me. There’s no one else on this earth that I would want to be my dad because no one can be half the man you were to me. I’ll see you every day when the sun rises and falls. I can confidently say all the deer and elk took a sigh of relief when the best hunter I’ve ever known laid his rifle down for the last time.”
Seth closed his tribute with a promise to reunite someday: “I love you so much and can’t wait to throw a line in the water with you again. Love you dad. Be good or good at it – love your son Seth.”
Kelly Clarkson, 43, has not yet spoken publicly about Blackstock’s death. The pair were married for seven years before finalising their divorce in 2022.
Despite the end of their marriage, Clarkson made sure their children, River Rose, 11, and Remington, nine, maintained a close relationship with their father, rearranging her schedule to ensure they could spend as much time with him as possible during his illness, Bang Premier detailed.
As those who loved him continue to grieve, Parton’s words serve as a reminder to hold on to cherished memories and let them live on in the hearts of those left behind.