Controversy has swirled around Elle King ever since Jan. 19. That's was the night of the Dolly Parton birthday celebration at the Grand Ole Opry House during which King cussed onstage, claimed to be drunk and flubbed lyrics to Parton's "Marry Me." In the days to come, the Opry issued an apology due to fan complaints, Parton's sister blasted King's behavior and King postponed several concerts.
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On Sunday (March 10), King issued her first statement about the incident via an Instagram reel. In the clip, King's shown running the steps of an empty arena. The text on the screen keeps things simple when it comes to both supporters and critics.
"To everyone sending me love because I'm human and already talked to Dolly I love you," she wrote. "To everyone who told me to k*ll myself, I love you too.
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The caption reads "Oh no was my human showing" and is punctuated by the hashtag #WWDD, a clear reference to "What Would Dolly Do?"
So far in March, things have gotten back to normal when it comes to King's career. She returned to the stage on March 1 after a hiatus spanned the rest of January and all of February. King appeared at the Extra Innings Festival in Tempe, Ariz. on March 1. The following day, she performed in San Diego, Calif. as part of Chris Stapleton's All-American Road Show Tour.
Parton addressed the King incident recently during an interview with "Extra" and asked fans to extend some grace to the "Ex's and Oh's" singer.
"Elle is really a great artist. She's a great girl, and she's been going through a lot of hard things lately," Parton said. "And she just had a little too much to drink, so let's just forgive that and forget it and move on, because she felt worse than anyone ever could."
