About
The familiar maxim of the triple threat – singer, songwriter, entertainer – didn’t begin to cover it for Toby Keith, one of the most prolific self-directed creative forces in country’s modern era. Keith amassed 42 top 10 hits, 33 No. 1s, 44 million albums sold, 100 million BMI performances, and more than 10 billion streams largely on the strength of his own songwriting and producing, and under the banner of his own Show Dog Nashville record label. Among his many accomplishments, the New York based all-genre Songwriters Hall of Fame (2015), the National Medal of Arts (2021), the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame (2021), and BMI Icon (2022) were his most treasured. He was elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame shortly before his passing in Feb. 2024.
Toby Keith’s career completed a perfect 30-year circle in the fall of 2023 as he performed “Don’t Let The Old Man In” and received the Country Icon award at the People’s Choice Country Awards. That moment once again had Keith at the center of a viral surge as tens of millions of video views underscored the song’s new and deeply personal meaning. The emotionally supercharged performance received widespread acclaim and drove the song to No. 1 on multiple Billboard and iTunes charts. It also set the table for a triumphant return to full-blown performing at his December 2023 Las Vegas residency.
Inspired by a conversation he had with Clint Eastwood in 2018, “Don’t Let The Old Man In” was later featured in Eastwood’s movie The Mule. It is yet another in a long line of chart-topping, viral, addition-to-the-cultural-lexicon milestones in his career. As a songwriter, this song that he wrote, solo, remarkably mirrors the success of another song that he wrote, also solo, but decades earlier. Of course, that song was his debut single “Should’ve Been A Cowboy,” which propelled him to country music prominence and, eventually, dominance. “Should’ve Been A Cowboy” soon had to compete with scores of his other multi-week chart-toppers as Keith’s signature song. Among them, “Who’s That Man,” “How Do You Like Me Now?!,” “Courtesy of the Red, White, & Blue (The Angry American),” “I Love This Bar,” “Beer For My Horses,” “American Soldier,” “As Good As I Once Was,” “God Love Her,” “Red Solo Cup” and “Made in America.” And then, “Don’t Let The Old Man In.”
Astoundingly, one of the most accomplished songwriters in any genre bookended his career exactly the way he’d started it: Sitting down with a guitar, by himself, and writing a song for the ages.
Not insignificantly, his musical acumen was nearly matched by his business acumen – an exceedingly rare left brain-right brain confluence. From his owned and operated record label, golf course and Luck E Strike tackle company to restaurants, movies, horses and a long-running association with Ford Trucks explain how in 2013 he was named “Country’s $500 Million Man” by Forbes. Dozens of other accolades include the Academy of Country Music Entertainer of the Year, Billboard Artist of the Decade and golf’s Arnie Award.
Toby’s most rewarding experiences, however, had come from giving back locally, nationally, and abroad. His annual golf classics fund The Toby Keith Foundation and OK Kids Korral, a cost-free home for families of children dealing with critical illnesses. The 20th installment of the charity event raised more than $1.6 million in addition to receiving pledges of $1.5 million for a newly established endowment, bringing its all-in total to nearly $20 million. His 11 USO Tours enhanced the lives of nearly 256,000 troops and military families across 18 countries with more than 285 events, and was recognized with the Spirit of the USO Award (2014). And when a tornado ravaged his hometown, Toby Keith was the face of the community and helped shoulder the cleanup with the 2013 OK Twister Relief Concert. Triple threat? How about singer, songwriter, musician, producer, entertainer, entrepreneur, humanitarian, Oklahoman and patriot.
