John Foster Rewrites His Most Personal Song for Dolly Parton — Adding a Heartbreaking New Chorus After Her Death
John Foster has found an especially poignant way to say goodbye to Dolly Parton — by returning to a song that was already born from devastating loss.
The American Idol Season 23 runner-up has added a new chorus to his original song “Tell That Angel I Love Her,” this time honoring Dolly following her death.
Foster originally wrote the deeply personal track in memory of his friends Maggie Dunn and Caroline Gill, who were killed in a car crash in 2022.
Now, after watching tributes to Dolly pour in from grieving fans, Foster said new words came to him — connecting the country legend with the two friends whose memories inspired the song in the first place.
A song that already carried an enormous emotional weight
Foster became a national name during Season 23 of American Idol in 2025, ultimately finishing as runner-up behind winner Jamal Roberts.
Among his most memorable moments on the show was his performance of “Tell That Angel I Love Her.”
Unlike a conventional competition song, Foster was singing about two people he had actually lost.
Maggie Dunn and Caroline Gill died on December 31, 2022, after former Addis police officer David Cauthron ran a red light while pursuing a suspect and crashed into their vehicle.
Their deaths became the inspiration for Foster’s song.
His grief was visible during the American Idol performance, and the raw emotion surrounding the moment helped the original track resonate with viewers.
“Tell That Angel I Love Her” subsequently became closely identified with Foster and was released as his debut single following his run on the show.
Dolly’s death inspired him to return to the song
Following Dolly’s passing, Foster began seeing messages, memories and tributes shared by people mourning the country music icon.
The reaction inspired him to revisit “Tell That Angel I Love Her.”
Rather than changing what the song originally represented, Foster added another chorus specifically for Dolly.
In the new lyrics, he imagines the sun shining like Dolly’s famous rhinestones while mourning the fact that fans will never again hear her unmistakable voice sing something new.
He then returns to the central idea behind his original song — asking the Lord to deliver a message to an angel.
This time, the message is for Dolly: the world misses her and will always love her.
The final sentiment also imagines Dolly alongside the loved ones Foster had already lost, “in the stars.”
Foster imagined Maggie and Caroline welcoming Dolly
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Explaining why he felt comfortable adding Dolly to such a deeply personal song, Foster said the words came to him shortly after her death.
He had been watching the enormous outpouring of affection for the country legend when inspiration struck.
Foster said he believed Maggie and Caroline “wouldn’t mind” him writing another chorus of their song for someone he felt sure they also loved.
He added the touching thought that they now “get to have” Dolly with them.
Foster ended his message by expanding the dedication beyond those three women.
“Lord, tell those 3 angels, and all other loved ones that we’ve lost, that we love them!” he wrote.
One song now connects three people Foster wanted to remember
That explanation gives the new version an added emotional dimension.
“Tell That Angel I Love Her” was never simply a song about death.
It was Foster’s way of continuing to speak to Maggie and Caroline after losing them.
By adding a chorus for Dolly, he has extended that same idea of remembrance to someone whose music touched millions of people he never knew personally.
The original song remains rooted in the tragedy that took his two friends.
The additional lyrics create another chapter without replacing that meaning.
He also sang one of Dolly’s most beloved songs
Foster’s rewritten chorus was not his first musical farewell to Dolly.
Soon after her death, he also shared a performance of “I Will Always Love You,” one of the defining songs of Parton’s career.
Dolly wrote and originally recorded the song decades before Whitney Houston transformed it into another worldwide phenomenon.
For Foster, choosing the composition provided another direct way to honor the woman behind the music.
Fans responded enthusiastically to his rendition, with many saying they believed Dolly would have been proud of the performance.
At the time the original article was published, Foster’s video had surpassed 775,000 views.
Dolly’s family asked fans to honor her through the Imagination Library
Music has dominated many of the tributes following Dolly’s death, but her family also pointed admirers toward another part of her legacy.
Rather than sending flowers, those wishing to remember Dolly were encouraged to consider donating to Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library.
Parton founded the program in 1995 with the goal of providing free books to children.
It eventually expanded far beyond its beginnings, reaching families across the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia and the Republic of Ireland.
Children receive free books from birth until age five regardless of their family’s income, with the program now distributing millions of books each month.
The initiative remains one of the most tangible ways Dolly’s influence continues beyond her music.
Foster continues honoring Maggie and Caroline too
Foster also used his tribute to draw attention back to the organizations keeping Maggie Dunn and Caroline Gill’s memories alive.
The med Foundation was established in Maggie’s honor and supports families dealing with the devastating loss of a young loved one.
The Caroline Grace Gill Foundation, meanwhile, works to assist and support law enforcement through improved education, training, technology and resources.
Its goal includes helping officers better protect their communities and reducing the chances of another family suffering a tragedy like the one that killed Maggie and Caroline.
‘Tell That Angel I Love Her’ has taken on another meaning
When Foster first wrote the song, its purpose was intensely personal.
It gave him a way to express grief for two friends whose lives had ended far too soon.
His emotional American Idol performance then introduced Maggie and Caroline’s story to millions of people.
Now Dolly Parton has become part of the song’s continuing story.
Foster did not need to write an entirely new tribute to her.
Instead, he returned to the words he had already used to cope with unimaginable loss and found room for one more goodbye.
In doing so, “Tell That Angel I Love Her” has become something larger than the song Foster originally wrote.
It remains a tribute to Maggie and Caroline.
But now it also carries a message for Dolly — and for everyone still wishing they could hear that familiar voice sing just one more time.
