Dolly Parton’s duet with young Alyvia Lind, the talented actress who portrayed her in Coat of Many Colors, was an incredibly touching and emotional moment. Alyvia’s voice, pure and full of innocence, blended beautifully with Dolly’s warm, seasoned tone, creating a heartfelt performance that resonated deeply with the audience. The song’s simple yet profound lyrics captured the raw emotions of childhood struggles, love, and loss, making it impossible not to be moved. This duet was more than just a performance—it was a passing of musical legacy, a bridge between generations, and a testament to the power of storytelling through song.
In 2016, Dolly Parton and then 9-year-old Alyvia Alyn Lind, who portrayed Parton in the TV movie Dolly Parton’s Coat of Many Colors, appeared on Hallmark’s Home & Family to discuss the country legend’s onscreen childhood story and perform the touching “Angel Hill.”
As Parton explains in the video, “Angel Hill,” written about the death of Parton’s baby brother, was actually written much earlier, but she decided to record it for the movie.
“A big portion of the movie was based on us losing one of my little brothers. My mother — there was so many of us, we were being born one right after the other — so mama would always tell one of the older ones ‘this baby’s gonna be yours’…So the baby mama was going to be carrying was going to be my baby,” Parton said. “We lost that baby and I was so brokenhearted. I had written this song years ago, but we used it in the movie.”
Lind, who recorded the song with Parton for the film, joined the “Coat of Many Colors” singer for a moving performance of the song.
Dolly Parton’s Coat of Many Colors, starring Lind (as Parton), Jennifer Nettles (as Parton’s mom, Avie Lee Parton) and Ricky Schroder (as Parton’s father, Lee Parton), was viewed by over 13 million people during its original broadcast. The TV movie was presented with the Tex Ritter Award, awarded to a film released the previous year featuring country music, during the 2016 ACM Awards.
In 2016, a sequel, the Emmy-nominated Dolly Parton’s Christmas of Many Colors: Circle of Love, premiered.
Since starring as Dolly, Lind has continued to be a successful actor, appearing in the Netflix series Daybreak (as Angelica Green), Future Man, An American Girl Story: Maryellen 1955– Extraordinary Christmas, Overboard and more.
From 2011 to early 2021, Lind starred on the soap opera The Young and the Restless as Faith Newman. She’s currently filming the horror film Chucky.
Lind, the daughter of Hollywood actress Barbara Alyn Woods and producer John Lind, previously appeared in Dark Skies, Blended, Mockingbird, the TV series See Dad Run, Revenge, NCIS, Masters of Sex and the TV movie A Deadly Adoption. Lind’s older sisters Natalie Alyn Lind and Emily Alyn Lind are also actors.
As for Parton, she has continued to share the stories behind her songs with her own Netflix series Dolly Parton’s Heartstrings, which premiered in 2019.
