Country musician Joe Diffie died Sunday due to complications from COVID-19, according to a press release by his publicist.
Two days before his death, he released a statement saying he was tested positive for COVID-19 and is to receive treatment, CNN reports. He is 61 years old. He was married with five children.
"My family and I are asking for privacy at this time. We want to remind the public and all my fans to be vigilant, cautious and careful during this pandemic," according to the statement released by Adkins Publicity after Diffie got the result. Diffie is the first in the genre of country music to disclose being positive from the virus, according to Variety.
Diffie's death is also the first reported death due to the coronavirus in the country music community, according to the report of Tennessean.
Diffie is known for his mustache, mullet, and his hit singles like "Honky Tonk Attitude", "Pride and Joy", and "Third Rock from the Sun".
About Diffie
Diffie was born on Dec. 28, 1958, in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and lived in Texas and Washington before moving to Nashville, Tennessee, after he lost his job at a factory in Oklahoma and worked as a demo singer before he signed a contract with recording company Epic Nashville in 1990.
Diffie's Career
After signing with Epic Nashville, Diffie made his first album, "A Thousand Wing Roads" along with his first song "Home". He got his first Grammy nomination when he released the single "Not Too Much to Ask" along with Mary Chapin Carpenter. It was a hit. In 1993, his singles "Honky Tonk Attitude" and "John Deere Green" made a hit as Honky went platinum, and John Deere Green went first on top five songs on the pop chart. The two songs became his trademark. He became a member of the Oklahoma Music Hall of Fame and also of Grand Ole Opry in 1994. He was the second member of the band who died over the weekend after Jan Howard who passed away at the age of 91.
He won his first Grammy in 1998 for the song "Same Old Train," a collaboration song alongside Clint Black, Merle Haggard, Patty Loveless, and Randy Travis.
Reactions
After Diffie's death, several colleagues in the country and the music industry as a whole reacted to his death and its causes.
Travis Tritt tweeted about Diffie's death due to COVID-19. He reacted that his death and said that his death was a shock in the whole country music community.
Brad Paisley said that all of Diffie's works will be remembered and "cannot taken away by any disease," as he referred to COVID-19.
Toby Keith, Keith Urban, Kelsea Ballerini, Carrie Underwood, and Trace Adkins offered deep condolences to Diffie's family.
COVID-19 Update
According to Worldometers.info, there are now 141,854 cases in the U.S. today, with 2,475 deaths and 4,435 recoveries. Diffie is one of the people who were added to the people who died from the virus. There are now 721,412 cases with 33,956 deaths, and 151,004 recoveries as of this writing worldwide. Diffie's family released a statement requesting for their privacy as of this moment.
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