The death of Dolly Parton has sparked a wave of AI-generated "deathslop" tributes, alongside a wider rise in AI chatbots that let people converse with digital recreations of deceased loved ones. Experts warn this trend, which includes viral novelty content and personal "grief bots," could reshape mourning in troubling ways, potentially encouraging people to process loss in isolation rather than through human connection and traditional rituals.

One example, an AI-generated country song called "Run Jolene" depicting Parton chasing her famous rival through heaven, has been viewed more than 1.4 million times on TikTok despite being created anonymously with no real artistic input. Parton's family, including her sister Stella, has pleaded with the public to stop spreading "fake AI garbage", while other deceased figures such as Robin Williams, Elvis Presley, Kobe Bryant and Charlie Kirk have received similar treatment, often distressing their relatives. OpenAI's Sora app fuelled much of this content before being shut down in April over concerns about violent imagery and copyright issues, though numerous alternative AI video generators have since filled the gap. Researchers, including graduate student Jack Manning, note that consenting to an AI avatar of oneself is not yet standard practice in wills, raising unresolved legal and ethical questions about "generative ghosts".