Spotify Announces ‘Run, Rose, Run’ Bookcast With Dolly Parton & James Patterson

Dolly Parton. Photo: Rob Hoffman

Spotify has announced a new immersive audio experience with Dolly Parton and author James Patterson that blends storytelling with original music for the Run, Rose, Run Bookcast.

Beginning on Feb. 23, the bookcast will be available exclusively on Spotify with multiple episodes releasing weekly. In partnership with Parton and Patterson, it will combine excerpts of their co-authored fiction novel with its original soundtrack written, produced, and recorded by Parton.

Set in Nashville, Run, Rose, Run centers around an aspiring female artist who comes to country music’s capital to pursue her music-making dreams. Behind the inspiration of her songs is a secret she has done everything to conceal, but she soon learns that her past is threatening the future she is trying to build.

Run, Rose, Run pairs Patterson’s character-building and dramatic skills with Parton’s unparalleled insight into the music world’s star-making machinery.

“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,” explains 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.”

“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,” adds 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.”

Following the Bookcast premiere, Parton will release the Run, Rose, Run soundtrack on March 4 through Butterfly Records in partnership with Ingrooves/UM. The album will also mark the first-ever soundtrack for a novel. On March 7 the novel will be released simultaneously with the last six episodes of the Bookcast.

“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.”