Kenny Rogers to join Dolly Parton for Tennessee wildfires telethon

Kenny Rogers and Reba Mcentire have signed on to help Dolly Parton raise cash for the victims of the recent Tennessee wildfires as part of a three-hour telethon next week (13Dec16).
Rogers, who performed the hit Islands in the Stream with the country legend, and Reba will join Alison Krauss, among others for Smoky Mountains Rise: A Benefit for the My People Fund on Tuesday in Nashville.
Proceeds from the charity event will benefit Parton’s My People Fund, which she set up last week (ends02Dec16) to provide monthly donations of $1,000 (GBP790) to families who lost their homes in the wildfires, which ripped through areas of Sevier County.
Another telethon, featuring appearances by Brad Paisley, Kenny Chesney and Luke Bryan, will take place on Friday night (09Dec16).
Dolly’s Smoky Mountains Rise telethon will be a swansong of sorts for her Islands in the Stream partner Rogers, who announced plans to retire from music when he wraps up his current tour.
The Coward of the County singer retired from international touring a few years ago and earlier this year (16) he talked about quitting life on the road for good – and he recently decided he has made all the music he’s ever going to make.
“I’ve done everything I set out to do,” he told Billboard during a press conference in September (16). “Every goal I’ve set, I’ve done that, and there’s a point where you have to say, ‘I’ve had my turn. Let someone else have it’, and that’s kind of where I am. It’s not that I dislike music; it’s just that I can’t keep doing this and do what I want to do, which is spend time with my family.”