Joni Mitchell lives.
Following a since-deleted online report about the legendary folk singer-songwriter's death, a rep for Rhino Entertainment, which is working on an ongoing reissue series of her catalog material, told Variety Oct. 7, "I can confirm all is well so this was done in error."
The outlet was not the one who originally reported that the 78-year-old had passed away. Variety noted that the story that published elsewhere contained the incomplete headline, "Joni Mitchell Dies at TK AGE," as well as editorial notes indicating details that needed to be filled in.
Mitchell, a 10-time Grammy winner and 2021 Kennedy Center Honors recipient, is one of the most influential female musicians of all time. The Canadian star rose to fame in the late '60s and is known for hit songs such as "Big Yellow Taxi," "Woodstock," "Help Me" and "Free Man in Paris."
Mitchell has largely kept out of the spotlight since suffering a brain aneurysm rupture in 2015, Variety reported. She has since relearned how to walk and regularly hosted parties with "Joni jams" at her central California home, the outlet said.
In January, Mitchell made headlines when she announced she would remove her music from Spotify, following the lead of fellow musician Neil Young in protesting the platform's inclusion of a podcast from COVID-19 vaccine skeptic Joe Rogan. In a statement posted on her website at the time, she said, "Irresponsible people are spreading lies that are costing people their lives. I stand in solidarity with Neil Young and the global scientific and medical communities on this issue."
Following the controversy, Spotify published its platform rules online and said in a statement that they have "removed over 20,000 podcast episodes related to COVID since the start of the pandemic."
In April, Mitchell returned to the public stage for the first time in eight years, joining other artists for a performance of two of her songs at the Recording Academy's 2022 MusiCares Person Of The Year event, where she was the guest of honor. Two days later, she made an appearance at the 2022 Grammys.