We recently connected with Natasha Neely and have shared our conversation below.

Natasha, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.

After graduating from Belmont University in Nashville, TN with a music business degree, I was determined to work in the entertainment industry in whatever capacity that would look like, ideally singing country music. One opportunity led to another, one connection led to another and the path started becoming more and more clear. I found myself not only singing with various bands and being casted in production shows as Natasha Neely, the country singer, but I also found myself leading country line dance lessons and impersonating Dolly Parton…for a living! Who knew. The corporate event industry is booming in Nashville, and it has become my main thing; therefore, leading me to start my own Entertainment company.

I’ll turn my focus to the Dolly Impersonator aspect of my business. In 2007, I worked at Dollywood in a country show (as myself). Upon moving back to Nashville following the performance contract, I had an agency approach me to be “their Dolly” to pitch for corporate bookings. I said, “sure why not!” Since then, word has spread, and dressing up in high heels and big hair has become my main source of income for our company Neely Henry Entertainment.

My husband, who also comes from an entertainment background of performing and producing live shows, co-owns the company with me. Last year we were proud to write, cast, direct, wardrobe, and fully produce our first production show that toured during the Christmas season Nashville Merry Country Christmas, performing 19 shows in 21 days.

Not only does Neely Henry Entertainment produce shows and live entertainment, but we also book other impersonators, line dancers instructors, and small bands and performing acts for the corporate industry in and around the Nashville scene.

Natasha, before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I probably elaborated more on this for the previous page!

Neely Henry Entertainment focuses on providing great communication, ease in the booking process, and most of all quality talent in professional line dance instructors, small bands, and impersonators for events in the Nashville area.

I am most proud of the Dolly business that I have built over the past 12 years: expanding my wardrobe with the help of the real Dolly’s wardrobe assistant, adding to my “hair” collection, building a full production show called Dolly! which showcases 90 minutes of songs and stories about Dolly’s life growing up in the East Tennessee Smoky Mountains, building better promo materials and branding, as well as connecting with as many and DMCs and event planners in the US as possible.

In March of 2023, Miss Dolly Parton gave me her stamp of approval over my entertainer/impersonator career when meeting her one early Saturday morning in a recording studio on Music Row in Nashville by saying “Good luck with your career, whether it’s being you or being me!” Proud moment for sure from the Queen herself!

We’d love to hear the story of how you turned a side-hustle into a something much bigger.

Absolutely! This definitely happened to me. Ever since I was a little girl, singing country music with a band has been my career. Growing up in Owensboro, KY, from the age of 3, I was performing on a regular hometown Opry show with a house band. This gave me lots of experience on stage performing for an audience and leading a band. From there, I always knew I wanted to be a famous country singer. I moved to Nashville, got a degree in music business, networked networked networked, landed a spot in production shows at Dollywood, Barbara Mandrell’s Fontanel Mansion, Nashville’s General Jackson Showboat, and also shared the stage at Gaylord Opryland Resort with Louise Mandrell in her Christmas production. I found myself singing in a variety of corporate bands around town performing well known cover songs. I joined an entertainment company called Downtown Band Entertainment, performing as a part of their products while also producing and operating the country product as my own. Through all of the years of performing opportunities as a vocalist, the Dolly “gigs” were rolling in. This to me was a side hustle all along but an extra source of income to help supplement the often times lower paying singing opportunities. To this day, the Dolly events dominate my calendar. Managing my schedule, the inquiries and communication, contracts, invoices, has become a full time job! I find myself dressing up in the highest of heels and tallest of hair on daily basis while most people are working “9 to 5.” See what I did there? ¨̮ I often keep my band and performing opportunities (as myself) on the weekends and travel many Saturdays throughout the year.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

2020! Pandemic! Didn’t we all? or at least all or most of us entertainers had to pivot…

Working in the corporate event industry booking all types of entertainment: line dancing, impersonators, live music, 2020 was rough! All events were cancelled. Unemployment was a thing. Owning a business that solely profits off of events and live entertainment, there was a lot of loss and uncertainty. I pivoted by joining the fitness industry and becoming a personal trainer. I own my own personal training business called Natasha Neely Fitness. While it’s a different industry than entertainment, I still manage both business similarly. This has been a great career over the past 4 years; however, entertainment came back STRONG! Events were plentiful as the world was anxious to interact again and have some fun in life after being stuck at home for a year. The fitness business that I have built has taken a back seat as the corporate event industry and opportunities as Dolly dominate again.

On the same subject as mentioned previously, I moved to Nashville to pursue a career as a country music industry. The career I have built as “Dolly” has been a career that in a way chose me. I didn’t choose it! I continued taking all the production shows and band opportunities that came my way, but as those diminish (only in comparison to the Dolly related events), it’s funny to see how often times in life, a career you set out to pursue sometimes does take a pivot or turn and lead down another path. If we just roll with it, it often times provides more clarity for the path that was meant for us which may not always be what we think it should be.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.natashaneely.com
• Instagram: @natashaneelyhenry
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/natasha.neely.9?mibextid=LQQJ4d
• Linkedin: @ Natasha Henry

Image Credits

Shannon Fontaine Photography
Jason Mallory Photography
Daniel Shackleford Photography