Tennessee Governor Bill Lee has announced plans to name Nashville International Airport after Dolly Parton, following the 80-year-old country star’s death from cancer this week.

The news comes after legions of fans signed an online petition to rename the airport after Parton, who was born in rural Tennessee and later moved to Nashville.

In a statement, Lee said he had spoken to Parton’s team, who “expressed their appreciation for the extraordinary outpouring of support to honor Dolly”.

“Dolly Parton’s extraordinary life is forever woven into the fabric of our state,” Lee said.

“At a place where Tennessee welcomes the world, it is fitting that Nashville International Airport would bear the name of our state’s favorite daughter and greet travelers with the enduring legacy of Dolly’s music, generosity, faith, and kindness,” the governor’s statement said on Friday.

The online petition to rename the airport was originally launched in January 2025, but gained fresh momentum following her death and had gathered nearly 160,000 signatures by Friday evening.

“What a wonderful way to share her light and magic across Tennessee and the world,” the petition says of the move to name the airport after Parton.

The BBC has asked the Dolly Parton Foundation for comment.

The name would need support from the Metro Nashville Airport Authority board, which is holding a meeting on the issue on 17 September, the governor’s office said.

The final decision would require approval from the Federal Aviation Administration.

A lawmaker also pledged in recent days to introduce legislation in the statehouse to rename the airport in Parton’s honour.

The US has named several airports after famous musicians and other celebrities, including Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport and Louisville Muhammad Ali International Airport in Kentucky.

Parton won 10 Grammy awards and sold 100 million records worldwide, including hits like Coat of Many Colors, 9 to 5, Jolene, and I Will Always Love You.