Dolly Parton has announced that she will read bedtime stories to kids to ease coronavirus anxiety.
This comes as many people around the world have been forced to self isolate and quarantine themselves in a bid to stop the spread of the virus. The announcement was made on Monday for the series which will be known as Goodnight With Dolly.
It will air once a week and feature the country singer reading children's stories on behalf of the literacy advocacy group Imagination Library. The first installment is set to air this Thursday on the Imagination Library's YouTube page.
In the video below, Parton reminds her fans that God loves them during the coronavirus pandemic:Parton announced that she would be doing the series on her Facebook page and a blog post on the Imagination Library's website. She explained that the series will run for 10 weeks and it has been designed to be "a welcomed distraction during a time of unrest."
"This is something I have been wanting to do for quite a while, but the timing never felt quite right," Parton said in the blog post. "I think it is pretty clear that now is the time to share a story and to share some love."
While an exact schedule for Parton's readings has yet to be announced, the singer did reveal the books she'd be reading. They are all from the Imagination Library's titles for young audiences. This includes one of Parton's own works Coat of Many Colours.
"It is an honour for me to share the incredible talent of these authors and illustrators," she added. "They make us smile, they make us laugh and they make us think."
Parton has yet to address the coronavirus pandemic by name, but in the video above, she did encourage her fans to "keep the faith" on her Instagram page.
"I think God is in this, I really do," she said in the clip. "I think he's trying to hold us up to the light so we can see ourselves and see each other through the eyes of love. I think that when this passes, we're all gonna be better people."