Dolly Parton has spoken out about the backlash to her upcoming collaboration with fellow music star Kid Rock.

Despite being one of the most universally beloved celebrities to grace the planet, 77-year-old Parton recently came under fire for dueting with the 52-year-old ‘All Summer Long’ singer.

Much of the criticism appears to stem from Rock’s reaction to Bud Light collaborating with trans social media star Dylan Mulvaney earlier this year.

Back in spring, Mulvaney took to her social media accounts to share several posts of her enjoying Bud Light and even shared a personalized Bud Light can. The outrage of this partnership soon hit headlines and led to Bud Light being dethroned as the top-selling beer in the United States.

Amid the controversy, Kid Rock expressed his dissatisfaction in a rather dramatic fashion – sharing a video on social media where he used his AR-15 to shoot at cases of Bud Light, accompanied by an explicit message directed at the beverage. Kid Rock reacts to Dylan Mulvaney’s partnership with Bud Light:

So when Parton announced that she had collaborated with Rock on her upcoming album, Rockstar, some of her supporters were quick to criticize her decision.

“Scrap that Kid Rock feature! Been a fan my entire life but I can’t buy this one,” one person commented on Parton’s promotional Instagram post for the album. A second added: “Love Dolly but will not financially support any record with Kid Rock on it.”

Many of Dolly’s Instagram followers couldn’t get on board with Rock being featured. Credit: Instagram

And in an op-ed for Advocate, senior editor John Casey wrote: “By including Kid Rock and putting him under the revered Dolly halo and that billion-dollar brand, she gives him cover, and by attaching her name to his, she lends credibility to his vile language.”

Now, Parton has defended her decision to work with Rock, explaining her reasoning in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter.

She said: “Of course I did that before the controversy that he had, but somebody was talking to me the other day, ‘How could you do this [song] with Kid?’ I said, ‘Hey, just because I love you don’t mean I don’t love Kid Rock. Just because I love Kid Rock don’t mean I don’t love you.'”

Dolly Parton has defended her duet with Kid Rock. Credit: Theo Wargo / Getty

“I don’t condemn or criticize. I just accept and love.” Parton added.

She clarified that she still would have collaborated with Rock even after the controversy, saying: “I’d have probably still done it, because he is a gifted guy, and that song was about a bad boy; it was about a boy that was cheating and mistreating her.

“But like I say, I love everybody. I don’t criticize, nor I don’t condone nor condemn. I just accept them.”

Parton then explained how her faith has led to her believing that today’s modern cancel culture is “terrible”, adding: “We all make mistakes. We don’t all get caught at it. But also when somebody makes a mistake, it depends on who they are. That’s what God is there for.

“Now I happen to believe in God; I’m a faith-based person, so therefore I am able to see it like that.

“A lot of people don’t, but even still, everybody deserves a second chance. You deserve to be innocent until you’re proven guilty. Even when you’re proven guilty, if God can forgive you, so can I. If God can forgive you, we all should forgive one another.”