The Grand Ole Opry inducted Tillis on June 9, 2007. He was inducted into the Opry by his daughter Pam. (In the 1990s, Pam became a very successful country music singer in her own right, with Top Ten hits like "Maybe It Was Memphis", "Shake the Sugar Tree" and the Number One "Mi Vida Loca (My Crazy Life)".) Along with being inducted into the Grand Ole Opry, it was announced on August 7 that year that Tillis, along with Ralph Emery and Vince Gill, were to be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame. Personal life and death Tillis had six children, including singer-songwriter Pam Tillis. Pam recorded for Arista Nashville in the 1990s where she had multiple country hit singles such as "Mi Vida Loca (My Crazy Life)" and "Maybe It Was Memphis". His son Mel "Sonny" Tillis Jr. is also a songwriter. Sonny co-wrote Jamie O'Neal's 2001 hit single "When I Think About Angels". Tillis suffered from several illnesses beginning in January 2016. On November 19, 2017, he died of respiratory failure in Ocala, Florida, at age 85. After this, Sonny Tillis began touring as a tribute act to his father. Discography The Statesiders The Statesiders were Mel's longtime backing band. They were named after his 1966 hit single "Stateside." Between 1969 and 1980 14 studio albums and 4 live albums were released credited to Mel Tillis and the Statesiders, and the Statesiders released one studio album on their own in 1975. Several notable musicians have served as Statesiders, such as Buddy Cannon, Paul Franklin, Hoot Hester, and Jimmy Belken of the Strangers. While many other members have played with them during their run from 1967 to 2017, below is a timeline of just the members during their recorded output. Bibliography References External links Mel Tillis at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum 1932 births 2017 deaths American country singer-songwriters American male singer-songwriters Country Music Hall of Fame inductees Deaths from respiratory failure Grand Ole Opry members Male actors from Florida Members of the Country Music Association Musicians from Tampa, Florida People from Pahokee, Florida People from Plant City, Florida Singer-songwriters from Florida United States National Medal of Arts recipients University of Florida alumni Writers from Tampa, Florida Country musicians from Florida Pahokee High School alumni Old Dogs members