"Toby Keith was big, brash, and never bowed down or slowed down for anyone," said Kyle Young, CEO of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum. "His story is a distinctly American one—a former roughneck oil worker who carved out his own space in country music with a sinewy voice and an unbending will to succeed. He wrote his breakthrough songs and later formed his own record label when he felt underserved by Nashville. He relished being an outsider and doing things his way. Proudly patriotic, he didn’t mind if his clear-cut convictions ruffled your feathers. For three decades, he reflected the defiant strength of the country music audience. His memory will continue to stand tall."
(Photo by Spc. Aaron Rosencrans/Wikicommons)
