Toby Keith Can Take The Heat

Toby Keith photo courtesy of Show Dog Nashville.

June 4, 2009 — Create some controversy, sell a few albums and concert tickets. That, apparently, is part of Toby Keith’s marketing game plan, which obviously is working.

Toby ranked No. 59 on the Forbes Celebrity 100 list of the most powerful famous people, posted Wednesday on the magazine’s website. The publication credited him with $52 million in revenues in the past 12 months, leaving him behind only Kenny Chesney and Rascal Flatts among country’s most influential in combined income and media presence. Toby made his mark with a bundle of well-written songs, a series of business ventures beyond his work as an artist and a certain swagger that includes a willingness to take the heat publicly.

His feud with the Dixie Chicks, his divisive "Courtesy Of The Red, White And Blue (The Angry American)" and April’s rift with Rolling Stone over a story on Kris Kristofferson all exemplify his willingness to be the subject of water-cooler debates.

"I used to embrace [the media], but I let go of that a long time ago," he told Forbes. "I manipulate writers now. If you manipulate them, you'll have thousands of writers who sit up writing headlines working for you."

One other way to make headlines: Open up your own restaurant and show up for the grand opening. Toby drew thousands of fans Wednesday, according to The Arizona Republic, for the first day of business at his latest I Love This Bar & Grill in Mesa, Ariz.

Country and country-related acts who appear in the Forbes Celebrity 100 include:
• Miley Cyrus, No. 29, $25 million
• Kenny Chesney, No. 31, $65 million
• Rascal Flatts, No. 42, $60 million
• Toby Keith, No. 59, $52 million
• Taylor Swift, No. 69, $18 million
• Carrie Underwood, No. 75, $14 million