Elle King breaks silence after 'hammered' Dolly Parton tribute performance: 'Oh no, was my human showing?'

Dolly Parton has already forgiven Elle King for her “hammered” tribute performance, and that’s the only stamp of approval the young singer needs.

After facing a month of criticism for appearing inebriated during a January concert honoring the country legend, King has broken her silence on the subject, thanking those who responded kindly — and those who didn’t. 

“To everyone sending me love because I’m human and already talked to Dolly, I love you,” the “Exes and Ohs” singer wrote over an Instagram video. “To everyone who told me to k*ll myself, I love you too.”

The video, in which she is shown running up the stairs of a stadium, was captioned, “​​Oh no, was my human showing?” alongside the hashtag, WWDD, a.k.a. “What Would Dolly Do?”

While King gave no further details on the nature of her conversation with Parton, the “9 to 5” singer has already voiced her support for her, urging fans to opt for forgiveness.

"Elle is really a great artist," Parton said in a February interview with Extra. "She's a great girl, and she's been going through a lot of hard things lately. And she just had a little too much to drink. So, let's just forgive that and forget it and move on, 'cause she felt worse than anybody ever could."

The January tribute concert held at the Grand Ole Opry was a celebration of Parton’s birthday and featured several artists covering the country star’s hits. King took the stage for a performance of "Marry Me” but was unable to recall the words. Videos shared online caught her slurring her words and using coarse language, at one point saying, “Y’all bought tickets for this s---? You ain’t getting your money back. I’ll tell you one thing more. Hi, my name is Elle King and I’m f---ing hammered.’” 

The venue issued an immediate apology for her behavior, and she was heavily reproached online. The response was heightened by the fact that King had faced similar criticism just weeks earlier, for a performance on New Year's Eve Live: Nashville’s Big Bash in which she also appeared inebriated and slurring her words. Just before singing her song “Drunk (And I Don’t Want to Go Home),” King told the audience, "It's okay, I live what I sing, y'all." 

King postponed several concerts in the wake of her Opry set and rescheduled them for later this year. Since resuming her performances, she returned to social media after a long break, sharing photos of herself backstage and gearing up for her concerts.

“Ope, there she is,” King captioned her first post back.

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