Toby Keith Shares His Thoughts About the Current State of Country Music

Toby Keith Shares His Thoughts About the Current State of Country Music

Ethan Miller, Getty Images

When it comes to sharing one's true feelings on just about any subject, you can count on Toby Keith to do just that. For example, I have interviewed Keith before, and when I asked him if he ever thought one of his singles wasn't going to make it to the top of the charts, he replied with, "No, the system got so easy for me, I'd write an album and I would tell the promotions staff, here's your four singles, go work 'em."

Keith was recently asked his true feelings on the current state of country music, at his 19th Toby Keith & Friends Golf Classic, and as expected, he didn't hold back. Keith shared an honest response about why his songwriting has slowed down in recent years, “because I have nowhere to go with it. You can get it streamed, and you’ve got your fans who’ll play it. But as far as getting airplay, what we do and what I made my Hall of Fame living doing, they don’t want that,” he said, referring to radio. “So, you’re kind of wasting your time.”

Keith continued being brutally honest.

“All those years of owning it, and being that guy where you just put it out and they’ll automatically play it, well, none of us are that guy anymore." Keith continued. "Even the new people don’t seem to last as long; they come and go pretty quick because it’s flavor-of-the-month stuff.”

Keith definitely had the recipe figured out during his career; he had more than 30 No. 1 songs and was touring all over the world at the height of his stardom.

“I’ve just never been that guy, and I’m not going to change and write that kind of stuff. But with all the songs we got, I could play four hours of straight hits,” the country music giant pointed out.

After his bout with stomach cancer, Toby Keith has made a few rare appearances and even played some shows as he eases back into the public eye.

Evan Paul is the host of Taste of Country Nights, a syndicated radio show heard on more than 120 country radio stations nationwide, every night from 7PM to midnight. He plays the best new country music and interviews today's top stars, like Luke Combs, Miranda Lambert, Dan + Shay, Keith Urban, Carrie Underwood, Luke Bryan, Chris Stapleton, Lady A, Morgan Wallen, + more! 

Country Stars and the Songs They Regret, Resent or Apologized For

It's rare to hear a country star confess to hating a song they've recorded, but it has happened. This list includes several apologies, quite a bit of ambivalence and at least once complicated instance when love for a song died with love for a man.

A few on this list are more nuanced: Thomas Rhett, for example, probably doesn't really "hate" "Crash and Burn," but for a few months, he seemed to. Gretchen Wilson admits to coming to love a song she once fought against recording, and a major country group just re-cut a song they burned out on in the early 2000s.

Scroll down to find our list of 10 songs that country artists regret or resent, and the explanations why.

PICTURES: See Inside Carrie Underwood's Beautiful Post-'American Idol' Home

Carrie Underwood invested her money wisely after winning American Idol in 2005. One of her first big purchases was a 3,099-square-foot home in the well-to-do Nashville suburb of Franklin, Tenn. Underwood paid $384,000 for a luxurious 3-bedroom, 3.5-bathroom stone and stucco home in a private gated community.

The house features a library, a vaulted ceiling and lovely amenities throughout, but while it's very nice, it's certainly not the kind of home you'd picture for a budding country superstar. Underwood wound up being a huge success right out of the gate with her debut album, Some Hearts, and she sold the home in Franklin for $372,500 in 2007, when she purchased the Brentwood mansion that she would later share with her husband, Mike Fisher.

11 Country Stars Who Don't Write Their Own Songs + 1 You'll Be Shocked to Learn Does

If you think a country singer needs to write their own songs to be a legitimate artist, take this short quiz:

Which of the following five hitmakers is also an established songwriter: Luke Bryan, Reba McEntire, Randy Travis, Blake Shelton, Alan Jackson?

Just two of those names make this list of 11 country stars who don't write their own songs, and one you'll be surprised to learn does. It's a list that includes four Country Music Hall of Fame inductees and at least two others sure to get in soon. The takeaway is that great singers are great storytellers, especially when they're telling someone else's story.
Filed Under: Toby Keith
Categories: Country Music News