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Dolly Parton writes heartfelt tribute to late Naomi Judd

Parton said she was "shocked" to hear of Judd's death and that they had been "very close."
/ Source: TODAY

Country icon Dolly Parton paid tribute to her friend Naomi Judd in a heartfelt Instagram post on Monday night.

"I was so shocked to hear about Naomi's passing," she wrote. "Naomi and I were close. We were very similar."

She noted they were both the same age of 76 and they were "both Capricorns."

"We loved big hair, makeup and music," she continued, adding that she has always loved the entire Judd family.

"They've always been like sisters to me."

Parton went on to congratulate Wynonna and the late Naomi Judd for being inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame on Sunday.

"I'm sorry I couldn't be there but I can hear Naomi saying now, 'Oh well, a day late and a Dolly short,'" Parton wrote. "Congratulations and condolences are both in order. Just know that I will always love you."

Ron Galella Archive - File Photos
Wynonna Judd, Dolly Parton, and Naomi Judd at a charity event on March 8, 1987 at the Lincoln Center in New York City.Ron Galella, Ltd. / Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images

Related: Naomi Judd tearfully honored by daughters Ashley and Wynonna at Country Music Hall of Fame induction

Naomi Judd died outside of Nashville on April 30, 2022. Her daughters attributed her death to "the disease of mental illness," in a statement to TODAY at the time.

"We are shattered. We are navigating profound grief and know that as we loved her, she was loved by her public. We are in unknown territory," Ashley and Wynonna Judd said in the statement.

Related: For years, Naomi Judd openly shared her struggles with severe depression

At the Country Music Hall of Fame induction ceremony on Wednesday, an emotional Ashley Judd said she was sorry her mother hadn't been able to "hang on until today."

"Your esteem for her and regard for her really penetrated her heart, and it was your affection for her that did keep her going in these last few years," she said.

Wynonna and Naomi Judd had been slated to go on tour later this year and had reunited to perform their 1990 hit song “Love Can Build a Bridge” at the 2022 CMT Awards earlier this month.