Jessica Simpson to put acting career on hold

LOS ANGELES - She made a splash in jean cut-offs as Daisy Duke in the big screen version of “The Dukes of Hazzard,” but as it stands now, Jessica Simpson has no immediate plans to return to acting.

“I’m not closing that chapter of my life by any means. But I am all about the music right now,” the 28-year-old Simpson told E! News columnist Marc Malkin. “When it comes to acting, it’s gotta feel right for me at this point in my life. It’s gotta just be a really incredible director and production with an awesome studio and great cast … But for me right now it’s just Jessica Simpson is music.”

Simpson is about to release her first country album, “Do You Know,” which includes a song about her boyfriend, Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo (“You’re My Sunday”), and a song written by Dolly Parton (“Remember That,” which finds the two women dueting). But not only did the country legend pen a tune for the star’s record, she actually helped Simpson stay committed to music after a disastrous performance at the Kennedy Center Honors, where Simpson messed up “9 To 5.”

“You know, what happened at Kennedy Center, I really thought I was done singin’. I was just at a place where I’d lost a lot of confidence and I didn’t even know who I was. But Dolly totally took me under her wing and helped me up and over the cares of the world,” Simpson told the columnist. “It went from the Kennedy Center to her being a part of this record and getting letters from her of encouragement. She told me she’s never been more proud of anything in her whole life. And I have it written down in her handwriting! I do owe a lot of my confidence to her.”

These days, Simpson said she is happy on stage and even wants to inspire others.

“(On stage), when I say, ‘Thank you for giving me a second chance,’ I feel like I’m having a comeback. I’m on solid ground again,” she said. “They can look to me for inspiration. I wanna be a role model.”

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