Country star Diffie dead from virus; folk legend Prine in critical condition

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This article was published 30/03/2020 (2106 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Country singer Joe Diffie, who was scheduled to perform at this summer’s Dauphin’s Countryfest, died Sunday in Nashville. On Friday, Diffie announced he had tested positive for COVID-19. He was 61.

“It is with a heavy heart we announce that Joe Diffie has passed away due to complications from COVID-19,” Dauphin’s Countryfest posted on its Facebook page Sunday night. “This virus is very real and we hope that everyone is taking it as serious as it is. Stay safe everyone.”

Diffie, an Oklahoma native who was known for hits such as Pickup Man and John Deere Greene, had five No. 1 singles in the 1990s and was a member of the Grand Ole Opry for more than 25 years.

It was also announced Sunday that John Prine, who was signed on to be a headliner at this year’s Winnipeg Folk Festival, is in critical condition due to COVID-19.

“After a sudden onset of COVID-19 symptoms, John was hospitalized on Thursday (3/26),” Prine’s official Facebook and Twitter pages announced Sunday afternoon. “He was intubated Saturday evening, and continues to receive care, but his situation is critical.”

The 73-year-old from Maywood, Ill., received a lifetime achievement award at the Grammys last month. Prine’s wife, Fiona Whelan Prine, announced on her Instagram March 17 she had tested positive for coronavirus. Prine’s test results came back indeterminate at the time.

Prine won the Grammy for Best Contemporary Folk Album twice in his career. His first win came in 1991 for The Missing Years and he’d win again in 2005 for Fair & Square. His latest album, The Tree of Forgiveness, was released in 2018. In 1996, he had neck surgery to remove a cancerous tumour. He went through another cancer battle in 2013 as he was operated on for lung cancer.