Bono has said he can’t listen to a song on the forthcoming 16th U2 album that marks Dolly Parton’s final recording – as she was sick and largely confined to bed rest when she chose to collaborate with him.

Parton, who died with cancer at the age of 80 in August, “got out of her bed to sing this song”, Bono told Rolling Stone. “And you can hear that. And I can’t even listen to it now.”

The legendary country star appears on “Torn”, a track on U2’s Carnaval De Luz, which will be released 13 November. Bono revealed that he and Parton had previously discussed working together, but that Parton had turned down a proposed track, saying it was “a little too Irish for me”. To make it up to Bono, Parton offered her own song to him.

“She said, ‘I got this song. It’s called ‘Torn,’ and do you wanna see where you can take it somewhere else, maybe?’”

Bono then worked on Parton’s lyrics with Snow Patrol’s Johnny McDaid, before presenting the track to Parton, who agreed to sing on it. “She sang her heart out,” Bono recalled, “and I cannot believe that’s an 80-year-old woman.”

The song’s producer, Garret “Jacknife” Lee, also confirmed that Parton had heard and approved the final mix of the song before her death.

“Dolly loved it,” Lee said. “She was so proud of her vocal and the recording. She was thrilled with it. We were very nervous that she might not approve, or would be uncomfortable with it, but she loved it.”

Parton was hospitalised at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville in with “kidney and autoimmune issues” five days before she died. It was later revealed she had died after “a brief battle with cancer.” The type of cancer has not been disclosed.

Parton was laid to rest at Woodlawn Memorial Park and Mausoleum in Nashville. She was buried next to Carl Dean, her husband of 60 years, who died in March 2025.

It was claimed this week (23 September) that only one person was allowed to see Parton on her deathbed: her longtime makeup and wig artist, Cheryl Riddle.

Meanwhile, Parton’s estate has been granted a temporary restraining order against the late star’s nephew and his private security company amid a bitter legal dispute over allegations of threatening and harassing behaviour.

She’s Alive, LLC, the entity Parton set up to protect her legacy after her death, filed a lawsuit on Tuesday alleging that the late country icon’s nephew, Bryan Seaver, threatened to smear her reputation and made violent threats against a number of employees.

In a statement to TMZ, Seaver denied the allegation that he was attempting to extort money from the estate, but maintained other claims were simply taken out of context.