Joe Diffie Honored With Surprise Tribute At The CMA Awards
Terry Wyatt / Stringer / Getty Images
While the annual CMA Awards largely recognize accomplishments made by current artists over the past year, they never shy away from honoring those who are no longer with us, and who have paved the way for artists and musicians today.
This rang true with the November 8, 2023 ceremony, with many special honorary performances including a nostalgic tribute to Jimmy Buffett and a passionate performance celebrating the Judds.
Morgan Wallen, HARDY, and Post Malone performed two Joe Diffie classics in a fun-filled performance.
Before the awards show, it had been announced that Morgan Wallen, HARDY, and rapper Post Malone would join forces for a special performance, but it was unclear what they would perform.
When Morgan Wallen and HARDY took the CMA stage, the audience was thrilled to hear the opening notes of “John Deere Green,” confirming suspicions (hinted at by host Luke Bryan) that the performance would be a tribute to the late, great Joe Diffie. Soon, Post Malone joined the two country stars on stage for a rendition of “Pickup Man.”
The high-energy performance had the whole audience on their feet, dancing and singing along, in a celebration that would have made Joe Diffie proud.
Joe Diffie’s son, Parker Diffie, had the honor of introducing the performance.
The CMA Awards had a special guest to introduce the Joe Diffie tribute – Joe’s son Parker – who also revealed that the songs performed will be included on HARDY’s upcoming third edition of his “Hixtape” series, with a project called Hixtape Volume 3: Difftape, arriving in March of next year.
Joe Diffie passed on March 29, 2020 but left an immeasurable mark on the hearts of country music fans.
RELATED: HARDY Officially Releases Joe Diffie Tributes With Morgan Wallen & Post Malone
Watch Morgan Wallen, HARDY, and Post Malone perform the high-energy tribute to Joe Diffie at the CMA Awards in the video below!
