Dolly Parton’s Creative Director Reveals His 35-Year Promise

Dolly Parton’s longtime creative director, Steve Summers, is opening up about the special bond he shared with the country music icon for over three decades.

Summers worked closely with the legendary singer until her recent death at age 80. He recalled how an interesting encounter at a Christmas festival helped shape the next 35 years of his life.

The creative director also shared a touching glimpse into Parton’s personality, away from the spotlight, including one particular memory involving the superstar and his young son.

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In a new interview with People, Summers took a trip down memory lane, reflecting on the time he spent with Dolly Parton. He revealed that his first meeting with the singer happened under fairly unusual circumstances.

The pair met back in 1991 at a Christmas festival. At the event, Parton had to deliver a speech while standing on top of a six-foot drum, so she needed help maintaining her balance. Summers, 26 at the time and standing at a good height, fit the role perfectly.

“I can remember her taking to me as we were walking up there,” Summers recalled. According to him, Parton repeatedly looked at him and asked, “You’re not gonna let me fall, are you?”

Although it may have been a simple question at the time, Summers said it took on a much deeper meaning for him. He remembered thinking for the rest of his career, “I will not let you fall. No matter what it is, I will not let you fall.”

The creative director added that he spent his entire adult life “making sure that she always felt supported.”

Dolly Parton’s Creative Director Lost A Friend, Mentor And ‘Muse’

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Summers’ relationship with Parton eventually extended far beyond simply deciding what the “Jolene” crooner would wear. He became the creative director at Dolly Parton Enterprises in 2006 and designed a plethora of looks for the singer each year.

In the interview, Summers admitted that processing the loss has involved some conflicting emotions. He described it as a “Juxtaposition between pain and joy” because he is grieving someone who occupied several important roles in his life.

“It hurts. I lost my friend. I lost my coworker. I lost my mentor. I lost my muse,” he reportedly said. However, Summers also said witnessing the reaction to Parton’s passing has also reminded him of just how huge an impact she had on the world.

For him, the legacy is not primarily about her awards, hit records, businesses or other accomplishments. “It’s about her soul. What a miraculous legacy to leave for any human, her heart, her soul, her ability to love and spread joy and compassion; not just her accomplishments,” he said.

Dolly Parton Helped Steve Summers Build His Career

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Long before Summers became the person behind hundreds of Parton’s outfits, he had been fascinated by her distinctive appearance. He recalled first noticing the singer in 1974 when he was just 10 years old. He saw her face on record covers that his grandfather had displayed.

“I can remember being fascinated by her,” he told the outlet. Years later, after entering her orbit through his work at Dollywood, his responsibilities gradually expanded.

On her part, Parton apparently recognizes Summers’ potential and invested in his development directly. She sent him to study fashion at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York.

That investment eventually paid off as Summers went on to oversee the elaborate wardrobe that became inseparable from Parton’s public persona. Speaking on their work together in an interview revisited by Vogue, Summers explained that Parton’s many different roles made dressing her particularly interesting.

“Designing for Dolly is great, because there are so many [Dollys],” he said. “I’ve got the philanthropist, the singer, the actress, the theme park owner. The canvas is always very broad.”

Summers Once Found Dolly Parton Playing With His Young Son

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Some of Summers’ fondest memories of Parton have little to do with clothing or celebrity. During the interview, he recalled one moment in particular that occurred after he moved to Nashville.

Parton had helped Summers get settled into a new apartment and was showing him around when he realized he didn’t know where his son was. He began searching the apartment before eventually looking outside.

“And we look outside,” he recalled. “And him and Dolly are running around in the backyard around the fountain playing with each other.”

That experience made him look at the 11-time Grammy winner in a different light. “I went, ‘Man, she doesn’t care if the room’s full or if there’s one person. She’s gonna take care of them and entertain them.’ And she did,” he said.

Steve Summers Wants Fans To Carry on Dolly Parton‘s Legacy

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Parton’s death on August 25 has sparked an enormous outpouring from fans, friends and fellow entertainers. For Summers, however, the lesson worth preserving isn’t simply about her success.

After spending more than three decades alongside her, he believed people can learn from the way she remained true to who she was and used that to connect with others.

“It’s unbelievable how she touched the world through her being her authentic self and not by what she did, because one person can make a difference. One person can change the way that the world sees love, and she did,” Summers said.

He argued that adopting even a fraction of Parton’s approach to compassion could have a very meaningful impact. “If all of us would do that, can you imagine if we would take one tenth of what she offers and apply it? We would change the whole world.”