Crypto traders turn Dolly Parton’s death into a memecoin frenzy

Memecoins once again seized on a viral news moment, with Dolly Parton becoming their latest target. After news broke Tuesday that the beloved country singer had died, users rushed to popular memecoin platforms to launch tokens, known for being driven by online trends and hype rather than underlying value, in her name. What followed was very un-Dolly-like behavior on the part of the coin issuers. They pulled a classic “rug pull”: After promoting the tokens until they attracted enough buyers, insiders sold off their holdings near the peak, sending their prices tumbling.

Most of the coins used some variation of Parton’s name, including “Dolly,” “DollyParton,” and “RIP Dolly Parton.” They launched either on Pump.fun, the popular Solana memecoin platform, or on Robinhood Chain, a newer blockchain network. “Dolly” was among the best performers, reaching a market capitalization of nearly $480,000 within the first few hours of its launch before plummeting below $180,000. 

The recent token launches follow a familiar pattern in which memecoin creators seize on the deaths of high-profile figures. Similar campaigns emerged after the deaths o...