Vin Diesel has left fans stunned after sharing a deeply personal musical tribute to Dolly Parton, who died aged 80 following a brief battle with cancer.
The Fast and Furious star took to Instagram with a video featuring a black-and-white photograph of the country music legend, captioned only with a prayer hands emoji.
Upon pressing play, followers discovered that the accompanying audio was Mr Diesel himself performing an emotional cover of I Will Always Love You.
Though the track is most commonly linked to Whitney Houston, it was Ms Parton who originally wrote and released the song back in 1974, achieving significant commercial success.
Dolly Parton has died at 80 years old on Tuesday
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GETTYMr Diesel delivered the ballad in a deep baritone, his voice audibly breaking with emotion on certain lyrics, including the words “please don’t cry.”
The tribute rapidly spread across social media platforms, with many of Mr Diesel’s followers apparently unaware that the Guardians of the Galaxy actor has a musical side. Reactions were sharply split.
One penned: “Vin, there are some people whose absence is felt, but whose love never leaves us.
“Seeing you honor Dolly with ‘I Will Always Love You’ feels like more than a song it feels like a promise to remember. She gave the world so much joy, courage, and kindness, and I love that her light continues to move through the people she touched.”
Vin Diesel shared an emotional tribute to Dolly Parton
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“She would have loved this cover, Vin,” another enthused.
Some were moved to tears, with a third adding: “Didn’t have ‘Crying to Vin Disel singing’ on my list today but here we are.”
“Please release the full version on streaming,” another requested.
Someone else wrote: “What beautiful tribute! Brave in more ways then one. Rest in peace Dolly, you will be deeply missed!”
Not everyone was won over, however. Some responses were less charitable, with one commenter simply calling it “really weird” and another asking: “Haven’t we been through enough?”
Another complained: “This is really weird.”
Mr Diesel’s foray into music is far from new. As a child, he performed in musical theatre, and he began rapping in the early 1980s before social media opened up a new avenue for his vocal talents.
“When I sang Stay, I remember Mikky saying something like, ‘Vin’s cover is the best.’ I was feeling all kinds of encouragement there,” he told People magazine, referencing a Rihanna cover he posted in 2013.
Vin Diesel left fans divided with the unique tribute
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He went on to release two original singles in 2020, Feel Like I Do and Days Are Gone.
His late Fast and Furious co-star Paul Walker, whom Mr Diesel affectionately called Pablo, proved to be one of his greatest champions when it came to singing.
“Bless my brother’s soul,” Mr Diesel said. “I remember in London when I told Pablo that all these people were concerned that I was singing, he was the one who said, ‘Don’t ever stop singing, you know you have something special.'”
Figures within the entertainment industry had cautioned Mr Diesel against sharing his vocal performances online, fearing it could undermine his credibility in the action roles that have defined his career.
Following Walker’s death in 2013, Diesel honoured his friend with a live rendition of See You Again at the MTV Movie Awards.
The Wiz Khalifa and Charlie Puth track was written in Mr Walker’s memory and featured in Furious 7, his final film appearance.
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