Dolly Parton drops surprise deluxe 'Rockstar' album for fans on 78th birthday

Dolly Parton has surprised fans with new music on her 78th birthday. The Country legend took to Instagram on Friday (January 19) to announce 'four never-released songs' alongside the deluxe edition of her 2023 Rockstar album.

Sharing the post to her Instagram page, Parton wrote: “Hey fans and friends, It’s my birthday so I’m going to give you a present! I’m releasing four never released songs for my birthday, to go with the Rockstar album, and a few others that you may have heard before that were not on the album," the singer added to the message, which was written in the grid post. I hope you enjoy them, and I hope you all have a happy birthday for me! LOL.”

The surprise announcement was captioned: “Surprise! Stream ‘Rockstar Deluxe’ wherever you get your music." Rockstar was initially released in November last year and is the singer's 49th solo studio album.

Before the release of Rockstar, the American singer said: "I'm so excited to finally present my first Rock and Roll album Rockstar! I am very honored and privileged to have worked with some of the greatest iconic singers and musicians of all time and to be able to sing all the iconic songs throughout the album was a joy beyond measure. I hope everybody enjoys the album as much as I've enjoyed putting it together!" she added.

The news comes after youngsters in the UK were spotted enjoying free books thanks to Dolly Parton's charity scheme, Imagination Library. The initiative - which started in 1995 - gifts over two million free books each month to children around the world.

The books arrived at community centres in Scotland's Avonbridge and Standburn area on Friday (January 19) with under-fives the first to get their hands on the age-appropriate books.