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10 Questions with ... Joe Diffie
April 28, 2019
Have an opinion? Add your comment below. It's more subtle things, like just being relaxed ... I've done thousands upon thousands of interviews, and the ones that I always walk away feeling the best about are the ones you forget that you're on the radio. Like you and I, we're just having a conversation, so it's just like very relaxed and laid back. Those seem to be the best ones to me
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BRIEF CAREER SYNOPSIS:
GRAMMY-winning Country artist Joe Diffie enjoyed a long string of hits in the '90s and early 2000s, including the #1s "Home," "If The Devil Danced (In Empty Pockets)," "Third Rock From The Sun," "Pickup Man," and "Bigger Than The Beatles," plus a dozen other Top 10s, scoring most of them while signed to Epic Records. On April 1, Diffie added a fun new entry to his resume when he became the midday host at Griffin Communications' Classic Country KXBL (Big Country 99.5) in his hometown of Tulsa, OK (NET NEWS 4/26). He voice tracks the shift from Nashville, or from the road when he's touring, as he still keeps an active road schedule, performing 70-80 shows a year. In recent years, Diffie has become a lyrical touchstone in hits by other artists, with a full-blown tribute in Jason Aldean's 2013 single "1994" (co-written by Thomas Rhett), and currently with a mention in Chris Young's "Raised On Country," where Young sings the memorable line, "Got my honky tonk attitude from Joe Diffie." We start our conversation there.
1. Other than the title of your third album, what is your honky tonk attitude, Joe Diffie?
I don't really know what my honky tonk attitude is. I'm just loving life, and having fun with our fans and singing. Mainly just trying to maintain a great career that I've had.
2. Have you been scratching your head for the last six years about how to "teach us how to Diffie?"
Lord, yeah. Actually, Thomas Rhett asked me to get up on stage with him. We were at some festival somewhere and he asked me if I'd come up and sing that song ["1984"] with him. He had some sort of really cool, sexy dance. I guess that was his Diffie thing. It was pretty funny.
3. How do you feel about being referenced in lyrics by all these young artists and songwriters?
It's super flattering. It really is, but it's taken me a little while to kind of get used to being in that role. I admit, I always heard songs about people [like] George Jones or Merle Haggard, and I just didn't ever feel like I was at that level. But it's a really big honor, and I'm just kind of happy to roll with it now.
4. It has to be nice to just really realize what a massive influence you've had on a whole next generation of artists. Do you think about your career in those terms?
I really don't. Basically, I'm out there working, and having fun, and making music, and meeting fans. I never think of it in a bigger term, in a bigger sense than that. I guess I'm kind of self-contained in that sense. But no, it's really humbling, honestly, if you do step back away from it and think about it a little bit. I'm really proud of that.
5. Have you had a chance to talk to Chris Young about "Raised On Country?"
Not at length. He did contact me and he wanted me to be in his video, and I was out of town doing some shows, so I couldn't make it. But I just told him how much I appreciated it, and it's really cool that he included me in that song.
6. What made you decide to do a radio show, how did that offer come together, and how is the show assembled?
I just kind of I thought it was a neat little opportunity. It's something fun to do. [Former KXBL PD] Brian Jennings was the genesis of the idea. I was born in Tulsa many moons ago, and they thought it would be kind of interesting to have somebody who is an artist from that area to be the noon DJ guy. So, I said, "Well, sure. I'll be glad to try it, and if it works out, great, if it don't then I'll just continue on." But it's been fun so far ... Honestly, it's kind of a bit of a trial basis to see if both parties are liking what's going on.
They send me a basic script and I look it over. Then, if I have any interesting anecdotes or stories about some of the artists that we play, [I add them]. We play mostly country legends, so if I have any stories about hanging out with Brooks & Dunn or whatever, I'm free to ad lib and put anything in there. So, it's kind of a cool deal. It really works out well.
I do most of them remotely. I have a little setup and I send it to them, and they kind of edit it together, so it works out really good for me ... It's a pretty seamless, smooth process.
They were kind enough -- because we knew that I was going to be on the road so much -- they sent me a little rig. It's like an iPad and microphone, so I can take it with me everywhere I go and I can do stuff spur of the moment if I need to.
7. You spent a lot of years on the other side of the microphone visiting radio stations and being interviewed. Is there anything you learned from those experiences that you're trying to apply to your show now?
It's more subtle things, like just being relaxed ... I've done thousands upon thousands of interviews, and the ones that I always walk away feeling the best about are the ones you forget that you're on the radio. Like you and I, we're just having a conversation, so it's just like very relaxed and laid back. Those seem to be the best ones to me.
8. What new music projects do you have in the works?
Well, I have a whole project that's done and we're just kind of waiting -- just due to some technical difficulties or, actually, more business issues -- we're waiting to see what's going to happen with it. So I'm kind of in limbo at the moment, but I've got plans for several other things.
I hear from most of my fans they want to hear some real Country stuff, so my newest project -- again, that's in limbo at the moment -- we've released two songs off of it ... But we're hoping to get the rest of it out ASAP. But it's been, like, gosh, coming up on two years since I've completed it, and I'm just waiting for it to happen.
It's a little frustrating, honestly, on my end, but we're working out a few little snafus here and there. I'm sure people don't really want to hear that. They don't care, but it's frustrating for me on my end because I've got this music ready to go out there and it's not happening at the moment. Hopefully, it'll be really soon though ... I hope I don't die and they have to release it posthumously.
9. I'm sorry to hear that. I hope it gets released soon.
Me too. I think fans will enjoy it. I really found some really cool songs ... I have, like, three on there that'll just absolutely bring you to tears. They're so emotional and they made me cry when I heard them. That's why I recorded them. And this one, [I played it for] my buddy Tracy Lawrence and he just started crying. He goes, "Man, turn that off. You're hitting me really close to home right there." And I said, "I'm sorry, man." He goes, "Wow, what a song!" So, I found some really great songs, [and] I'm anxious for people to hear them.
10. You've been paid tribute to by Jason Aldean, Thomas Rhett and Chris Young. Are there any other artists you'd love to hear reference you in song?
Sure, all of them. Why not? [Laughs] I just saw somebody posted a video the other night with Ashley McBryde and another great songwriter, Kendell Marvel, and a couple of other people who were onstage somewhere down here in Nashville singing [Diffie's 1993 hit] "Prop Me Up Beside the Jukebox (If I Die)." I thought that was really cool.
Honestly, at first I didn't know what to think about the Jason Aldean song, because Thomas Rhett wrote the song with a couple of other great writers [Luke Laird and Barry Dean,] and the first time I heard it was actually Thomas' demo of it. I had no idea that it would transpire into what it did. But honestly, I'm very grateful because it pretty much gave me a nice little boost with our audiences, the amount of people who were coming to see us -- all these younger fans of Jason's and Thomas', because Thomas does the song almost every night in his set. A bunch of people are hearing the song, so now they're all coming to see me and it's like, "Oh, that's that dude they're talking about." [But] they know every word to every song and it just blows my mind, so I'm very grateful for it.
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