Archival Clip Captures Dolly Parton and Kelly Clarkson’s Intimate ‘I Will Always Love You’ Duet

“I Will Always Love You” often invites large-scale, technically challenging vocal performances. Dolly Parton and Kelly Clarkson showed another side of the ballad when they spontaneously sang several lines while seated only inches apart, without a backing track, orchestral arrangement, or staged presentation.

The footage originated with Parton’s Season 4 appearance on The Kelly Clarkson Show, which aired December 1, 2022. As their interview moved into the country standard’s long history, the two began an informal acoustic harmony from their chairs. It was a brief, unrehearsed exchange rather than a complete performance prepared for the broadcast.

Parton established the melody and its soft pace, while Clarkson supported her with harmony and kept the songwriter at the center. The moment resembled a musical conversation between Parton and an admirer more than a standalone television production, capturing the two performers enjoying the song together.

Their discussion included Whitney Houston’s celebrated version as well as Clarkson’s earlier rendition. At the ACM Awards in March 2022, Clarkson had performed the ballad as a powerful solo tribute honoring Parton. Parton praised her publicly afterward, and that awards-show performance helped lead into the subject during their daytime interview.

Watch the full performance on page two