Kansas State Fair regrouping after a just-announced grandstand act dies from coronavirus
It was March 2 the Kansas State Fair announced that it had landed country legend Joe Diffie to perform a Grandstand concert on Sept. 15.
Now, less than a month later, the fair is dealing with the news that Diffie, 61, has died from coronavirus complications. His publicist announced on Sunday that the singer — the first country star to go public with a coronavirus diagnosis — had died earlier that day in Nashville.
Now, fair officials say, they’ll be looking for another performer to take the stage with Kansas singer Logan Mize and will be releasing information in coming days about options for those who already bought tickets.
“In respect to all Joe’s fans, we will provide details soon on your ticket options,” the fair said in a news release on Monday.
Diffie, a Tulsa native, was known for hits like “Prop Me Up Beside the Jukebox (If I Die),” “Home” and “Pickup Man.”
The fair had already sold quite a few tickets for the concert, especially considering they’d been on sale less than a month, said Amy Bickel, the fair’s director of marketing and public relations, on Monday.
The Kansas State Fair is scheduled for Sept. 11-20 at the Kansas State Fairgrounds in Hutchinson.
For more information on grandstand acts, visit www.kansasstatefair.com.
This story was originally published March 30, 2020 at 12:18 PM.
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