Toby Keith (l) and Willie Nelson (r) perform "Angel Flying Too Close to the Ground" at the November 6, 2007 BMI Country Awards. Photo courtesy of BMI.
Jan. 6, 2009 — Toby Keith is an opinionated guy, and he’s willing to listen to other people’s opinions, too — as long as they know what they’re talking about.
Toby writes and produces his own music, though he fought for years against executives in Nashville who tried to make him sound a little more like everyone else that was having success. He eventually established his own record label, Show Dog Nashville, and now there’s no one who can push him around as he steers his own creative ship.
"For so long I’ve struggled with creating stuff and having success and then having people that can’t do what you do telling you what to do," Toby told the Academy of Country Music’s ACM Tempo. "If Willie Nelson is going to critique one of my songs, then I’m going to listen, but I’m not listening to some jackass who came up through the mailroom and can’t rhyme ‘blue’ with ‘hue.’"
One rhyming view: Toby’s not through. The year is new, and "God Love Her" is, too.
It’s at No. 11 on the USA Today Mediabase country singles chart.