Adkins said, quoting Keith, “Never apologize for being patriotic,” from the platform.
On July 29, 2024, in Nashville, Tennessee, Trace Adkins takes the stage at Bridgestone Arena. Image courtesy of Tibrina Hobson/Getty Images for Universal Music Group
In the two-hour NBC program Toby Keith: American Icon, Trace Adkins paid a moving homage to Toby Keith, recalling their many years of traveling together and the significant influence Keith had via his patriotism.
Adkins was one of the few artists that really know Toby Keith and the man behind the scenes, having been friends with Keith for many years and going on tours with. Adkins paused to remember the poignant message that Keith conveyed at the conclusion of each of his live performances before giving an incredibly emotional and beautiful rendition of “American Solider” in honor of Keith and his dedication to the military.
“I’ve known Toby for a very long time, and we did a lot of gigs together while on multiple tours together. I seem to recall that at the end of each performance he gave, he would always say, “Never apologize for being patriotic.” Every night, he said that, Adkins noted. And since, my God, he really did believe that, I realized while he was saying it that it was both a challenge to the rest of us and a window into Toby Keith’s personality.
Keith lived what he preached, and Adkins praised him for it. Keith had undertaken 11 USO Tours, performing in front of 256,000 soldiers and military families in 18 nations at over 285 engagements.
“He had a deep-rooted love and respect for the men and women who have served this country.” It was real, authentic, and meaningful. With a rich, baritone voice, he remarked, “I always respected him so much for that.” “Toby is someone I could talk about all night, but for now I’ll just say that I’m glad I got to know him and call him a friend. We miss you, Toby. Thank you.
Trace Adkins performed “American Solider” in a terrifying manner a short while later. On the screen behind him, pictures of Toby Keith and his numerous USO Tours displayed during his performance. Toby Keith: American Icon gave a truly remarkable performance, and it was undoubtedly an emotional time.
Written by Keith and Chuck Cannon, “American Solider” was published in November 2003. It can be found on the album Hi Shock’n Y’all and has an RIAA Platinum certification.
Among the many famous country musicians that gave their all to pay tribute to the late Toby Keith was Trace Adkins. Priscilla Block, Luke Bryan, Eric Church, Jordan Davis, Scotty Emerick, Brett Favre, Brantley Gilbert, Riley Green, HARDY, Tyler Hubbard, Jamey Johnson, Krystal Keith, Ella Langley, Mac McAnally, Ashley McBryde, Parker McCollum, Leanne Morgan, Darius Rucker, Carrie Underwood, Clay Walker, and Lainey Wilson were among the performers and special guests on the two-hour special.
The special featured a variety of musical performances that showcased Keith’s amazing songwriting and music, but it also emphasized his kindness and generosity by supporting The Toby Keith Foundation’s OK Kids Korral and Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt. Families from both groups seemed to tell the stories of how they were helped and supported when things were really hard.
NBC broadcast Toby Keith: American Icon on Wednesday, August 28 at 9 p.m. ET/PT. The next day, Peacock will offer the episode for streaming.
On February 5, 2024, the legendary country music performer Toby Keith departed from this life due to stomach cancer. He had an astounding 32 No. 1 hits over his career and sold an astounding 40 million albums.
Given that he has achieved a chart-topping hit for 20 years running, including “How Do You Like Me Now?!,” “Courtesy of the Red, White, & Blue (The Angry American),” “I Love This Bar,” “Beer For My Horses,” and “As Good As I Once Was,” it should come as no surprise that he is considered one of country music’s biggest hitmakers.
In addition to being inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame (after being admitted into the all-genre Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2015), he has been awarded the National Medal of Arts and the prestigious Merle Haggard Spirit Award by the Academy of Country Music.
The Oklahoma native won three BMI Country Songwriter of the Year awards over his career in addition to the BMI Icon Award. In 2006, his popular song “As Good As I Once Was” won BMI’s Country Song of the Year.
To date, Toby Keith’s music has received 100 million terrestrial radio spins and over 10 billion streaming.
My Stepmom Returned My Prom Dress to the Store Just a Day Before the Dance — the Reason Left Me Speechless
The night before prom, Gia is ready to lay out her clothes and have an easy night. But as she opens her closet to take out her dress, she finds it missing. Later, she discovers that her stepmother, Cindy, had returned the dress to the store… What on earth could be the reason?
My mom died when I was ten.
It was sudden, like the world had just stopped spinning. One minute, she was tucking me into bed, and the next, she was gone.
Flowers on a headstone | Source: Midjourney
“I’ll always be with you, Gia,” she said one day as she tucked me in, her hands shaking wildly. “Whether I’m right next to you or not, I’ll always be here. Do you understand?”
I remember nodding sleepily as she kissed my cheek.
Losing her crushed my dad and me in ways I still can’t put into words. We were just completely… lost.
A woman tucking her daughter into bed | Source: Midjourney
Then, a few years later, Dad married someone new. Cindy. Now, Cindy wasn’t evil or cruel or anything like that. If I’m being honest, she tried. She smiled a lot, bought me gifts, and cooked things that I enjoyed eating. She even waited for me to come home from school, ready to make me a toasted sandwich while asking me about my day.
But no matter what Cindy did, she wasn’t my mom. My heart just didn’t seem to let her in. And because of that, we never really clicked on a personal level.
A smiling couple | Source: Midjourney
Fast forward to senior year:
I’m 17 and waiting for prom. And for the first time in forever, I felt excited about something. Dad gave me a budget for a dress, and I spent weeks scouring the internet for ideas.
When I finally found it, a gorgeous deep-blue gown that made me feel like an actual princess, I knew that it was the one.
A smiling teenage girl | Source: Midjourney
“That’s it, Gia!” my friend Selene said as I stepped out of the dressing room.
“You think?” I asked. “You really think so?”
“Yes! Your eyes pop with the blue, and your skin looks so good with it. This is it, Gia. Don’t even waste your time looking for another dress.”
I smiled.
“Fine, let’s focus on you now,” I said.
A teenage girl in a dressing room | Source: Midjourney
Standing in front of the mirror at the boutique, I felt like I could see the old me again, the one from before my life flipped upside down. There was a light in my eyes again.
Everything seemed perfect. For once, it felt like the universe was giving me a break. But that all shattered the day before prom.
I got home from school, ready to get into a bubble bath, shave, wash my hair, and have an early night. I was going to lay everything out before I went to bed — my dress, shoes, makeup options, all of it.
A teenage girl’s vanity | Source: Midjourney
I ran up the stairs and flung my closet door open, hoping to give my dress a look-over before I got into the bath.
But it wasn’t there.
All I saw was the empty hanger.
I blinked hard, as if somehow my dream dress would magically appear before my eyes. Of course, it didn’t.
Where on earth is my dress?
An empty hanger | Source: Midjourney
I yanked things off hangers and tore through drawers. Maybe I’d been careless and shoved it somewhere, right?
But deep down, I knew I hadn’t. I was so paranoid about wrinkling the dress that I had taken clothes off the hanger the day I brought it home. That dress had been the centerpiece of my week. I would never have misplaced it.
I ran downstairs, hoping to see my dad. He would have answers.
A close up of a teenage girl | Source: Midjourney
Instead, Cindy was sitting at the kitchen island, cutting into veggies and sipping her tea like nothing was wrong.
“Gigi,” she said, using a name that only my dad called me. “Dad is away for the night because of work. He said that he’ll try to be back in time to see you off tomorrow.”
How could she talk like nothing happened? Like nothing was wrong?
A woman busy in a kitchen | Source: Midjourney
“Cindy!” I exclaimed. “Have you seen my prom dress? It’s gone!”
She looked up, completely calm, like I hadn’t just dropped a bomb in the middle of the kitchen. I was starting to feel panicked. I could taste bitterness on my tongue. I was on the verge of a breakdown.
“Oh, that? Gia, I returned that to the store.”
“You did what?” I gasped.
A shocked teenage girl | Source: Midjourney
It felt like my brain had short-circuited.
“I returned it,” she repeated as if she was telling me she’d picked up groceries at the store. “It just didn’t seem right, Gigi. It was too grown-up for you.”
I stood there, unable to move.
“How could you do that? Prom is tomorrow evening! Why would you touch my stuff without asking me?”
A close up of a woman | Source: Midjourney
Cindy tilted her head like I was overreacting.
“You’ll understand tomorrow,” she said quietly, sipping her tea.
Her nonchalance lit something inside me. I couldn’t believe she was acting so casual, like she hadn’t just taken the one thing I’d been looking forward to for months and thrown it in the trash.
I stormed up to my room, slamming the door so hard the walls shook. I buried my face in my pillow, tears soaking into the fabric.
An upset girl | Source: Midjourney
How could she do this to me?
That night, I cried myself to sleep, my anger burning hot and bitter. I felt betrayed. She had no right to mess with my dress. She had no right to interfere with my prom.
But what did I expect?
Cindy wasn’t my mother.
An upset girl in her bed | Source: Midjourney
The next morning, I woke up to the heavy weight of disappointment. I didn’t even want to go to prom anymore.
What was the point?
But Selene wasn’t having it.
“You need to find out why she did it,” she said over the phone. “It’s weird, right? Like, she has to have a reason. Just… talk to her, Gia.”
A girl talking on the phone | Source: Midjourney
I rolled my eyes.
“There’s no reason good enough for what she did.”
“Maybe,” Selene said. “But don’t you want to know?”
Selene had a point, and she knew it. So, against my better judgment, I dragged myself out of bed and went downstairs.
A girl talking on a phone | Source: Midjourney
Cindy was waiting for me, dressed in jeans and an old sweatshirt, looking more nervous than I’d ever seen her.
“Come with me, Gigi,” she said quietly.
I stared at her for a long second. A part of me wanted to blow her off entirely. But there was something in her voice, something soft.
A close up of a woman | Source: Midjourney
Without a word, I followed her to her bedroom.
There was a box on her bed, wrapped in a bow.
“This belonged to your mom,” Cindy whispered, her voice catching. “I found it while cleaning a few weeks ago. I’ve been wanting to turn the attic into something new, like a little reading room.”
I froze.
A box on a bed | Source: Midjourney
My heart hammered in my chest as she peeled away the tissue paper, revealing an elegant, vintage white dress. It was stunning — lace sleeves, delicate beadwork, the kind of timeless beauty that would never go out of style.
Cindy glanced up at me, her hands trembling slightly.
“I thought maybe you’d like to wear it. To prom. When I returned the blue dress, I took this one to be dry-cleaned.”
A dress in a box | Source: Midjourney
For a moment, I couldn’t speak. I couldn’t even think.
All the anger, all the resentment, all the hurt I’d held onto melted into shock.
“I wasn’t trying to hurt you, my darling,” Cindy whispered. “I just thought that this way, your mom could be with you. I will never replace her, Gia. But I wanted to give you something that mattered.”
A smiling woman | Source: Midjourney
Tears welled up in my eyes before I could stop them. All this time, I’d been so sure she was trying to ruin my prom. But instead, she was giving me the most meaningful gift she ever could.
That night, I wore my mom’s dress to prom.
As soon as I slipped it on, I felt her with me, like she was wrapping me in a hug. The dress fit perfectly. Cindy helped me with my hair, and for the first time, I saw her not as someone trying to replace my mom, but as someone who cared. For me. Deeply.
A crying teenage girl | Source: Midjourney
When I walked downstairs, my dad was waiting. His eyes widened, and his breath caught.
“Thank goodness I made it,” he said, tears brimming in his eyes. “You look just like Mom!”
A close up of a man | Source: Midjourney
The prom was magical. And as I danced with my friends, I saw once again that Cindy hadn’t stolen anything from me. She’d given me something priceless.
A way to feel connected with my mom again. And I felt so beautiful. Absolutely beautiful.
A teenage girl in her prom dress | Source: Midjourney
When I got home, Cindy was sitting on the couch wrapped in a blanket.
“You’re waiting up for me?” I asked, kicking off my shoes.
“Of course, my darling,” she said. “I wanted to know how your night went. And I’ve got ice cream in the freezer. Mint choc-chip. Your favorite. We can eat it while you tell me.”
That’s when I broke down. In that moment, I knew Cindy wasn’t just my dad’s wife. She was someone who loved me, too.
And maybe, just maybe, that was going to be enough.
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