SPOTIFY ANNOUNCES RUN, ROSE, RUN, A NEW BOOKCAST, STORYTELLING THROUGH MULTIPLE AUDIO FORMATS, LAUNCHING WITH DOLLY PARTON AND JAMES PATTERSON
Run, Rose, Run Will Blend Selections of Parton and Patterson’s New Audiobook With Parton’s New Album For An Immersive Audio Experience
LOS ANGELES, Calif., (February 23, 2022) – Spotify (NYSE: SPOT) announced today a unique audio experience that blends audio storytelling with original music and sound elements for an immersive listening experience – the Run, Rose, Run Bookcast. In partnership with Dolly Parton and James Patterson, Run, Rose, Run, will combine excerpts of their co-authored fiction novel with its original soundtrack written, produced, and recorded by Parton. The Bookcast will bring the audiobook to life with the curated music that lends itself to a theatrical audio experience for listeners. Beginning on February 23rd, the Run, Rose, Run Bookcast will be available for free exclusively on Spotify, with multiple episodes releasing weekly.
Set in Nashville, TN, Run, Rose, Run centers around an aspiring female artist who comes to country music’s capital city to pursue her music-making dreams. Behind the inspiration of her heart-wrenching songs is a brutal secret she has done everything to conceal. She soon learns that the past can’t be hidden, and is threatening the very future she is trying to build. Run, Rose, Run, pairs co-author James Patterson’s brilliant character-building and dramatic skills with Dolly Parton’s unparalleled insight into the music world’s star-making machinery.
“We are honored to partner with Dolly Parton and James Patterson on Run, Rose, Run, a trailblazing audio experience from two of the world’s most prolific creators, that combines Spotify’s core elements – music and spoken audio,” says Dawn Ostroff, Spotify’s Chief Content and Advertising Business Officer. “This unique audio experience exemplifies the limitless potential of audio and Spotify’s commitment to partnering with exceptional creative talent on new innovative formats.”
“I still can’t believe that I get to launch Spotify’s first ever Bookcast with my buddy James Patterson. What a great way to reach out to listeners all around the world,” says Dolly Parton. “When we wrote this book together, I felt I could contribute best by sticking to my first love, music. James and I hope that listeners will be able to feel the connection between the book and the album as we work to bring this story and these characters to life, as only two storytellers can.”
“I’ve been a fan of Dolly Parton’s storytelling for years, so I was thrilled to collaborate with her on Run, Rose, Run and bring these characters to life,” said James Patterson. “The music she’s
created around this project is incredible, and I’m grateful that Spotify has given us the opportunity to bring listeners a new experience of the book and album.”
Following the Bookcast premiere, Parton will release the Run, Rose, Run soundtrack on March 4th. The album is released through Butterfly Records in partnership with Ingrooves/UMG, and will be the first-ever soundtrack for a novel. On March 7th the novel will be released simultaneously with the last 6 episodes of the Bookcast. The album and book can be preordered at the links below.
Pre-order for the Run, Rose, Run Album available HERE. Pre-order for the Run, Rose, Run novel available HERE.
About Spotify:
Spotify is the world’s most popular audio streaming subscription service with a community of more than 381 million Monthly Active Users and 172 million Premium Subscribers. With a presence in 184 markets, and more than 70 million tracks including 3.2 million podcast titles, it has transformed the way people access and enjoy music and podcasts. As of 2021, Spotify is the #1 Podcast platform for US Listeners.
About Dolly Parton:
Dolly Parton is the most honored and revered female country singer-songwriter of all time. Achieving 25 RIAA-certified gold, platinum, and multi-platinum awards, she has had 26 songs reach #1 on the Billboard country charts, a record for a female artist. Recently, Parton reached #1 on the Billboard Christian Airplay Chart for the first time for her duet with Grammy award-winning Zach Williams of “There Was Jesus,” for which they won a Grammy this year, making that her 11th Grammy win. She received her first Dove Award for short-form video for her collaboration with for King & Country on the song “God Only Knows.” Parton is the first artist to have topped the Billboard’s Adult Contemporary, Christian AC Songs, Hot Country Songs, Christian Airplay, Country Airplay and Dance/Mix Show Airplay radio charts. Parton recently became the first country artist honored as Grammy MusiCares Person of the Year given out by NARAS. She has 44 career Top 10 country albums, a record for any artist, and 110 career-charted singles over the past 50+ years.
In 2014 the RIAA recognized her impact on recorded music with a plaque commemorating more than 100 million units sold worldwide. Her 2016 #1 album, “Pure & Simple,” which topped the Billboard Top Country Albums and Americana/Folk Albums charts and debuted at No. 1 in the U.S., Canada, U.K. and Australia, added to that massive tally. She has garnered eleven Grammy Awards and 50 nominations, including the Lifetime Achievement Award and a 2020 win with for KING & COUNTRY for their collaboration on “God Only Knows”; 10 Country Music Association Awards, including Entertainer of the Year; five Academy of Country Music Awards, also including a nod for Entertainer of the Year; four People’s Choice Awards; and three American Music Awards. In 1999, Parton was inducted as a member of the coveted Country Music Hall of Fame.
Last year, she released the Christmas album “Holly Dolly Christmas” which went #1 on the Billboard Country and Holiday charts, as well released the bestselling coffee table book “Songteller: My Life in Lyrics.” This year she won an Emmy Award for Outstanding Television Movie for the film “Dolly Parton’s Christmas on the Square.” To date, Parton has donated over
175 million books to children around the world with her Imagination Library. Her children’s book, Coat of Many Colors, was dedicated to the Library of Congress to honor the Imagination Library’s 100 millionth book donation. In March of 2022 , Parton will release the book Run Rose Run which she co-authored with James Patterson, alongside an accompanying album of the same name with original songs inspired by the book. Parton also released her own fragrance line this year called “Dolly: Scent From Above.” From her “Coat of Many Colors” while working “9 to 5,” no dream is too big and no mountain too high for the country girl who turned the world into her stage.
About James Patterson:
James Patterson is the world’s bestselling author. His enduring fictional characters and series include Alex Cross, the Women’s Murder Club, Michael Bennett, Maximum Ride, Middle School, and Ali Cross, along with such acclaimed works of narrative nonfiction as Walk in My Combat Boots, E.R. Nurses, and his autobiography, James Patterson by James Patterson. Bill Clinton (The President Is Missing) and Dolly Parton (Run, Rose, Run) are among his notable literary collaborators. For his prodigious imagination and championship of literacy in America, Patterson was awarded the 2019 National Humanities Medal. The National Book Foundation presented him with the Literarian Award for Outstanding Service to the American Literary Community, and he is also the recipient of an Edgar Award and nine Emmy Awards. He lives in Florida with his family.