Los Angeles [US], August 28 (ANI): Actor Vin Diesel paid tribute to late country music icon Dolly Parton in a rather unexpected way.
A day after the singer's death, Diesel shared a black-and-white picture of Parton on Instagram, along with an audio recording of himself singing her famous song 'I Will Always Love You'. At one point in the recording, Diesel even appears emotional as he sings, "So, goodbye / Please, don't cry."
Along with the audio recording, the actor also captioned the post with a prayer hands emoji.
Parton originally wrote and recorded 'I Will Always Love You' in 1973. The song later became even more popular after Whitney Houston recorded it for the 1992 film 'The Bodyguard'.
Soon after Diesel's post, fans chimed in in the comments section to share their reactions. One fan shared their surprise at hearing him sing and wrote, "Didn't have 'Crying to Vin Diesel singing' on my list today but here we are."
Another fan praised the actor for his singing and wrote, "Vin, you never cease to amaze me. You are a man of many talents. A once in a generation actor, writer and now singer? Save some talent for the rest of us buddy!"
However, some social media users were unsure whether Diesel's singing was real. One fan wrote, "I THOUGHT THIS WAS A JOKE WHEN I SEEN IT ON TWITTER WHAT IS HE DOING."
Parton's death was announced by her nephew, Bryan Seaver, on August 25. She was 80. Her representatives later told PEOPLE that the singer died following a "brief battle with cancer". The type of cancer was not disclosed.
Since her death, several singers, friends and fans have shared tributes to the legendary musician.
Meanwhile, Parton's connection with 'I Will Always Love You' goes back decades. She wrote and recorded the song herself before Houston's version introduced it to a new generation of listeners.
According to PEOPLE magazine, Parton, while speaking about Houston's version during an interview with Larry King on CNN in 2003, recalled hearing it on the radio for the first time.
"One day I was riding along in the car and just turned the radio on, and I heard her start that a cappella, like, 'If I should stay...'" Parton recalled. "It took me a few seconds. I thought, 'What is that? That's so familiar.' And then when she went into the 'I will always love you,' I just about had a heart attack and died." (ANI)
