Joe Diffie’s Wife Responds to Rumors About How He Died

Joe Diffie died on March 29 at age 61 due to complications from the coronavirus, and his wife, Tara, is setting the record straight on the matter of her husband’s death. In a post on Instagram, Tara responded to articles alleging Diffie died from something other than the coronavirus, denying the reports and calling them “upsetting” for her family.

“my husband did NOT HAVE LUNG CANCER,” she wrote alongside a screenshot of an article making the claim. “his father passed, same name, November 2018 to stage IV lung cancer. STOP STARTING FAKE NEWS. I’ve seen multiple posts and it’s upsetting to all of us.” Diffie’s father, Joe Riley Diffie, died of cancer in November 2018, his obituary states. Another conspiracy theory from someone who claims to have a friend who was a friend of Diffie alleges that the musician and others died of something other than the coronavirus but hospitals have been reporting their deaths as being COVID-19-related to boost funding. The allegations even warranted an investigation from Snopes, who declared reports Diffie died from lung cancer as “false.”

The “Pickup Man” singer died after issuing a statement on March 27 announcing that he had tested positive for COVID-19. Since Diffie’s death, Tara has been remembering her husband on Instagram, and on March 30, she shared a post thanking those who had sent her and her family messages of support.

“I cannot count how many people have contacted me,” she captioned a photo of herself and Diffie kissing outside on a farm. “From coast to coast, all walks of life. Joe was so loved and I hope he can see how he affected everyone’s lives. From the candles, to the parade, to the people leaving gifts at the house- i thank you from the bottom of my heart! The radio stations are all playing his music and it makes my heart happy. We have loved every tribute. He loved his fans, his friends, his family and he was truly happy. Please keep playing his music. Please keep his legacy alive forever.”

Over the weekend, she shared another tribute to Diffie, posting a photo of the pair making silly faces while swimming in a pool. “I miss my my best friend,” her caption read. “My true love and the weirdest weirdo i ever met. We laughed and loved hard. He was the love of my life. We always laughed.”