Dolly Parton Crushes Twitter Meme With Expertly Deployed 'Jolene' Line
Dolly Parton is offering a public service by informing the masses of exactly what kind of person will steal your man.
The country superstar participated in the new Twitter trend known as the red flag meme on Wednesday. To join in, users post characteristics about an individual, warning signs or instances that they believe to be red flags, and follow up that description with, well, a string of red flag emojis. It’s all deliciously shady.
Here are some examples:
“Steak well done” 🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩
— Tim Chantarangsu (@TimothyDeLaG) October 12, 2021
“My car in the shop” 🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩
— Drebae (@Drebae_) October 13, 2021
When they don’t wait for you to get inside the house after dropping you off. 🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩
— your fav b 🍃 (@BAEBRRI) October 12, 2021
When they only use salt and pepper to season their food 🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩
— Kalen Allen (@TheKalenAllen) October 12, 2021
As a grown woman why do you think you know me based off my birthday?? 🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩
— L✗✗k (@Ohh_itsLEEK) October 12, 2021
when your boss thanks you for his trip to outer space🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩
— BAmazonUnion (@BAmazonUnion) October 14, 2021
when your hairstylist don’t take a picture after your appointment 🚩🚩🚩🚩😂
— faith (@faiththegemini) October 13, 2021
When he start calling you "bae" "babe" "baby" on the first day of y'all talking 🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩
— Rich Melanin🤍 (@Ericaaaa_12) October 12, 2021
officer: “hang tight”
🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩😭— Mike Mike (@itzmoneymike) October 12, 2021
And although the tweets above are all worthy of the red “100” emoji, they could also pack up their flags and go home — because Parton absolutely destroyed the competition when she posted her own red flag tweet.
When her beauty is beyond compare with flaming locks of auburn hair 🚩🚩🚩
— Dolly Parton (@DollyParton) October 13, 2021
In case you’ve been living under a boulder in Red Rock Canyon for the past few decades, the line is from Parton’s 1974 hit “Jolene.” The song is about a beautiful red-haired siren who will seduce your lover with a voice that is “soft like summer rain.”
Interestingly enough, the origin of the song’s title actually stems from a pretty innocent place.
“One night, I was on stage, and there was this beautiful little girl — she was probably 8 years old at the time,” Parton revealed to NPR in 2008. “And she had this beautiful red hair, this beautiful skin, these beautiful green eyes, and she was looking up at me, holding, you know, for an autograph. I said, ‘Well, you’re the prettiest little thing I ever saw. So what is your name?’ And she said, ‘Jolene.’ And I said, ‘Jolene. Jolene. Jolene. Jolene.’ I said, ‘That is pretty. That sounds like a song. I’m going to write a song about that.’”
Parton’s lyrics, however, were inspired by a moment of jealousy.
Soon after Parton married her husband, Carl Dean, in 1966, an attractive redheaded bank teller supposedly began flirting with him, per the Independent. This didn’t sit well with the songwriter, prompting her to write out her feelings about a woman who she felt deserved all the red flags.
This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.
