Elle King says she was 'sobbing' after drunk Dolly Parton tribute: ‘What have I done?’

Elle King is ready to share what actually happened during the night of her controversial performance at Country Music’s Grand Ole Opry in January.

LISTEN NOW : Elle King tells Chelsea Handler she was 'sobbing' after drunk Dolly Parton tribute

King recently appeared on Chelsea Handle r’s Dear Chelsea podcast to address the incident where she took the stage over-served at Nashville’s Grand Ole Opry during a tribute show for Dolly Parton ’s 78th birthday. Video clips of King at the Opry that night quickly went viral after she was captured slurring her speech, cursing, harshly clapping back at fans and even forgetting the words to the Dolly song she was performing, “Marry Me.”

“I did a big no-no. I not only cussed on-stage, hammered at the Grand Ole Opry, but it was Dolly Parton’s birthday and the Opry was doing a Dolly Parton tribute,” Elle said, recapping the events to Handler. “I haven’t spoken about it because… I just had to just chill, it was a big deal.”

With no intention of making excuses for herself, King provided some more detail surrounding the events that unfolded explaining she was at rock-bottom and a last-minute fill in for another artist who backed out of the show at the last minute.

“I had been going through something very heavy and traumatic in my life at the time and that day was a very big day dealing with what I was going through and am still going through,” she explained. “That day, I hadn’t eaten, I hadn’t slept in days and I was really overwhelmed… they called me and there was a big snowstorm that day and this other singer who was supposed to be the headliner backed out like three hours before and they asked me if I would be the headliner and sing, ‘Jolene.’ I was like, ‘Wait! I know that song… first show, f***ing perfect.'”

It was the second show where things took a turn for King, who admits she took one too many shots and has no personal recollection of what happened on stage. “I take one shot too many and I’m just not there in my body, I’m not there. I don’t remember it, I don’t even remember what I said — I know now what I said. I said, ‘I’m Elle King and I’m f***ing hammered’ and I got the curtain dropped on me.”

Her memory picks up in the dressing room where she knew exactly how badly shed disrespected one of Country music’s most prestigious establishments and beloved artists. “I just cut to the dressing room, me on the floor just sobbing, ‘What have I done?!’ And then the next day it was everywhere. I was mortified. I hand-wrote an apology letter to the Opry and I handwrite an apology letter to Dolly.”

Despite the messages she was getting via social media telling her to surrender her son and take her own life, Elle found a glimmer of hope from Dolly Parton who gave her a call just a few short days after the incident. “Dolly called me a couple days later — she’s just proof that angels exist,” Elle shared. “She just gave me really kind words and told me, ‘Well, Dolly’s not mad at you, why should the world be?’ She made me laugh.”

Now, five months later, Elle has picked herself up and found ways to better herself following that night. “That was me hitting a massive brick wall and I’ve made changes in my life and I feel like I’m becoming a stronger person because of it,” she said. “I’m not grateful for it, but at the same time, I can find a silver lining in literally anything. I’m going to choose to use this as a tool to not defeat me, but to make me hopefully a better person.”