Why Dolly Parton decided to give a Texas drag queen a rhinestoned guitar

Bandit had spent 2023 testifying at the Texas Capitol against bills that would ban certain drag performances and story hours, and she joined a lawsuit to stop the legislation. After she performed her Dolly Parton act at Oilcan Harry's in Austin that December, a host sat her down on stage while a five-minute video played of people thanking her for that work.

Then came the oddly shaped box wrapped in pink. Bandit said she thought at first it might be a Dolly costume. It was not. Inside was an acoustic guitar covered in rhinestones and signed by Parton herself.

For Bandit, the gift arrived at the end of an exhausting stretch, after months of showing up at the Capitol to fight legislation that directly targeted performers like her. Getting recognition from one of country music's most iconic figures carried obvious weight, especially in a year when Texas drag performers were fighting for the right to keep working.

Bandit told Texas Standard she can't actually play guitar, which makes the rhinestoned instrument less a musical tool and more a piece of history she never expected to hold.