Why Elvis Presley Never Recorded Dolly Parton's 'I Will Always Love You:' 'It Broke My Heart'

Before Whitney Houston made it her signature song, Dolly Parton's "I Will Always Love You" almost ended up in the hands of Elvis Presley.

In W Magazine's new cover story starring Dolly Parton, the country legend reveals why the King of Rock & Roll never recorded the ballad and why her decision made her cry "all night." (PEOPLE has an exclusive first look at the cover!)

The 75-year-old shares that she met up with Presley's manager, who asked for half of Parton's publishing rights for "I Will Always Love You" in exchange for the late singer to record the song.

"I said, 'I'm sorry, but I can't give you the publishing.' I wanted to hear Elvis sing it, and it broke my heart — I cried all night," Parton told the outlet. "But I had to keep that copyright in my pocket. You have to take care of your business!"

"Everybody's going to use you if they can," she added. "These are my songs — they're like my children. And I expect them to support me when I'm old!"

But despite never being recorded by the "Jailhouse Rock" crooner, the song still played a pivotal role in Presley's life.

"Priscilla, Elvis's wife, told me that when she and Elvis divorced, Elvis sang my song to her," she said. (Elvis and Priscilla Presley divorced in 1973.) "That touched me so deeply. And they also played the song at Whitney Houston's funeral. After that, I thought, I bet they'll play the same song when I go."

What has set Parton apart from other artists — aside from her distinctive voice and one-of-a-kind looks — are her instincts as a businesswoman.

RELATED VIDEO: Dolly Parton Says She's Launching a Fragrance Because She Loves "Smelling Good"

"You have to keep going, but you have to be smart about your time and your choices," Parton said candidly. "I can enjoy all this fun stuff, but I always say, when it comes to business, I look like a woman, but I think like a man. Over time, that has helped me a lot: I will tell you where to put it if I don't like where you got it."

Also in the interview, Parton revealed she had "two or three different people in mind" to play her in an eventual biopic, but she'd be down to play herself.

"Well, there's different phases," she said. "We'd probably have to cast a little Dolly, a medium Dolly, and an older Dolly. I had two or three different people in mind, but they're almost as old as I am now!" Parton said. "I could play myself. And I might! I'm whatever age I have to be. I always say, I'm as old as yesterday, but I'm as new as tomorrow."

During the interview, Parton also reminisced about her childhood and start as a singer.

"When I heard 'Puppy Love' on the radio for the first time, I about killed myself. I was sitting on the counter at my aunt's house, and suddenly I heard my voice," Parton said. "I slid on the floor, 'cause she was mopping. I was trying to get to the radio."

"Even to this day, I've never had anything that was more exciting than the first time I heard myself on the radio," she added.

Also during that time, Parton said she had a sweet crush on none other than Johnny Cash.

"I love boys. I still do. In the early days, I had a big crush on Johnny Cash," she said. "He was young and skinny, and he just had that magnetism. The way he moved around — you know, so sexy. I found out later he was just having withdrawals from drugs, but it still touched me. He was so, so sexy."