Dolly Parton's America – Episode 4: "Neon Moss"

Date: November 5, 2019
Hosted by Jad Abumrad, produced by Shima Oliaee

Overview

“Neon Moss” delves into the significance of Dolly Parton's Tennessee Mountain Home—not merely as a physical place but as a powerful symbol of belonging, memory, and the immigrant experience. Through deeply personal storytelling, host Jad Abumrad explores the emotional resonance of "home" by paralleling Dolly’s nostalgia with his own family's journey from Lebanon to Tennessee. The episode broadens to examine the interconnectedness of musical traditions, challenging our ideas about origins, culture, and what binds us together across generations and continents.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Dolly’s First Journey Out: Childhood Memories and Discovery

[01:02–02:38]

• Dolly Parton recounts her first trip related to music, traveling from Knoxville to Lake Charles, Louisiana as a young girl.
• She experiences Spanish moss, her first love (a boy named Johnny), and even her first banana:

  “It was just a whole bunch of feelings that I still remember, like it was just like it was yesterday.” – Dolly Parton [02:36]

The Real Tennessee Mountain Home

[03:07–07:02]

• Jad and producer Shima visit the actual Tennessee Mountain Home, guided by Dolly’s head of security, Brian Seaver.
• The house is a reconstructed version standing on the original land—its setting, surrounded by vast pine trees and neon-green moss, sets it starkly apart from the Dollywood replica:

  “It's just a house on a hill surrounded by forest. Tiny house surrounded by these hundred foot tall pine trees.” – Jad Abumrad [06:23]

Exploring the Grounds: Personal and Family Histories

[05:03–11:23]

• On the tour, Brian Seaver shares emotional stories about the property, like family weddings, funerals, and memories of his Papaw’s boots.
• The land includes the family’s schoolhouse and a chapel, each reconstructed to preserve memory for the Partons, used for real family events even today.
• Dolly’s reflections on her grandfather’s music in the church highlight the formative influence of faith and family.

The "Rhyme" of Home: Jad’s Lebanese Roots

[14:52–21:26]

• Jad unexpectedly feels déjà vu at the Tennessee Mountain Home, recalling his father’s ancestral village in Lebanon—remarking on the parallel experiences of crowded, simple childhood homes:

  “It's almost identical. Like Dolly. There was one bedroom. We were five kids and two parents.” – Dr. Najee Abumrad (Jad’s father) [16:40]

• Discussion of immigrant nostalgia and the unvoiced longing for the places left behind.
• Dr. Abumrad describes solitary visits to his Lebanese home as “my therapy,” illustrating the ongoing emotional connection to one’s roots.

The Universal Language of Home and Music

[23:35–24:12]

• Dolly and Dr. Abumrad share a candid conversation about the emotional weight of home—how nostalgia and belonging transcend cultural boundaries:

  “Two people that couldn’t be more different...are so similar in so many ways that it’s fascinating to us.” – Dolly Parton [24:12]

• Musicologist Helen Morales broadens the theme, describing Dolly as "immigrant music":

  “Home is in the music. Home is listening to the music.” – Helen Morales [26:01]

The Banjo: Music’s Global Migrations

[29:37–36:33]

• Rhiannon Giddens, acclaimed musician, discusses the African roots of the banjo and the history of country music's global fusion.
• The banjo, often symbolically “white” in Appalachia, actually arose from Africa and the Caribbean before being adopted by white Americans.

  “The banjo’s roots are in West Africa…It became what we know of as the banjo in the Caribbean.” – Rhiannon Giddens [31:46]

• Giddens’ project illustrates how ballads and instruments travel across oceans and eras, mixing and shapeshifting.

Defying Origins for a More Connected Story

[36:33–39:22]

• The show’s interviews with musicologists dismiss the obsession with origin stories in music, emphasizing centuries of mixture, migration, and cultural exchange.

  “The human story is about migration...One group moves from A to B. And in that, they affect. And they are themselves also affected…” – Narrator [38:44]

• The real magic lies in the way cultural elements meld, changing those who adopt them as much as those who originated them.

Closing Reflections: The Radio as Metaphor

[40:47–42:13]

• Jad’s father recalls first hearing Western music on a small radio in his Lebanese village, possibly even tuning into Dolly.

  “We used to congregate in front of that shop because that's how we listen to the music.” – Dr. Najee Abumrad [41:09]

• Jad contemplates the image of the radio—a symbol of how stories, music, and longing for home traverse time and space, intermingle, and shape our sense of belonging.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the Mystique of the Mountain Home:

  “No, you're in. You're real country now.” – Brian Seaver, on visiting the home’s rural setting [06:09]

• The Neon Moss:

  “This moss...It’s literally like walking on the sponge of the earth.” – Narrator [08:04]
  “It’s almost neon.” – Brian Seaver [08:11]

• The Immigrant Heart:

  “I've always been really tickled and a little bit confused, like what could they possibly have in common? But then seeing how similar his house looked to hers…” – Jad Abumrad [18:22]

  “Dolly Parton is immigrant music.” – Helen Morales [25:35]

• On Musical Roots and Ownership:

  “Origins are really hard in music. Like, when you talk origins, it becomes a conversation about who owns it. But in fact...there was just too much mixing.” – Jad Abumrad [37:22]

  “We have this desire to reach beyond who we are and who surround us. That, to me, is the interesting story.” – Jad Abumrad [38:39]

Timestamps for Major Segments

• Dolly’s Early Musical Memories: [01:02–02:46]
• Visiting the Real Tennessee Mountain Home: [03:07–07:19]
• Touring Schoolhouse and Chapel: [09:04–11:23]
• Brian’s Story of Performing with Dolly: [11:35–13:36]
• Jad Compares Dolly’s Story to His Lebanese Roots: [14:52–21:26]
• Helen Morales on “Immigrant Music”: [25:20–26:34]
• Rhiannon Giddens: The Banjo’s Cultural History: [29:37–37:18]
• Reflection: Music, Migration, and Connection: [38:39–39:22]
• Najee Abumrad Remembers Hearing Western Music in Lebanon: [40:47–41:42]
• Closing Reflections and Song: [42:13–43:13]

Conclusion

“Neon Moss” offers a deeply personal and wide-ranging meditation on home—how it both anchors and eludes us, and how music serves as both memory and bridge between worlds. By braiding Dolly Parton’s story with immigrant experiences and the secret, tangled migrations of music itself, the episode transforms the Tennessee Mountain Home into a universal symbol—reminding us that beneath our divisions, we all carry our own neon moss, and stories, wherever we go.