Kenny Rogers, Dolly Parton Shared The Stage For The Last Time 9 Years Ago

Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton shared the stage together for the last time on October 25, 2017.

The late legends were close friends and performed as a musical duo for more than three decades. Their final performance together was at All In for the Gambler: Kenny Rogers' Farewell Concert Celebration, which took place at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville, Tennessee. Rogers and Parton began the show with "You Can't Make Old Friends." Later, Parton delivered a solo rendition of "I Will Always Love You," and she and Rogers concluded the star-studded performance with "Islands in the Stream." The all-star show also included Chris Stapleton, Reba McEntire, Wynonna Judd, Little Big Town and others. The live concert and televised special served as a tribute to Rogers' decades-long career.

According to a post on Instagram from Rogers' team on Monday (October 26), "there was not a dry eye in the house," during Parton's surprise rendition of "I Will Always Love You." "It was one incredible, history-in-the-making evening that we will never forget!"

Rogers died on March 20, 2020, surrounded by loved ones in Georgia. He was 81. Parton died on August 25 "after bravely facing a brief battle with cancer." She was 80. Parton said of Rogers in an interview with PEOPLE in 2023, "I miss him so much. I've lost so many wonderful people in my life in the last few years. But Kenny - he was very, very dear and special and I never get tired of hearing us sing, all the years that we were on stage together."

Rogers' family paid tribute to Parton after her death. The family said, in part, "We must accept that you've simply traded your butterfly wings in for angel wings. Though we write this through tears and feelings of extraordinary grief and sadness, at the same time we realize how thankful we are that you were able to live such a vibrant and meaningful life using your many God-given talents, in turn making millions of other lives better, and we are happy for you and the reunions you're enjoying with your heavenly arrival. Dolly, we will think of you every step of the way...and we will ALWAYS love you!"