For the spotlight today, we step back in time only a decade thereby remaining in the 21st century. The genre: Country Music. With classic rock pretty much dominating the music scene for decades, it comes as surprise to some, not so much to others, that country music has surpassed the classics in popularity. This is partly attributed to many cross-over artists. [Read the full story: The NPD Group]
Welcome to the spotlight...
In 2011, Toby Keith was named “Artist of the Decade”
by the American Country Music Awards.
by the American Country Music Awards.
Toby Keith: Country music sensation best known for his rousing anthems to the U.S. soldiers serving in the Middle East
After working for a while in the oil industry and playing defense in the United States Football League (USFL), Toby Keith decided to pursue a career in music. Keith's self-titled debut album went platinum in 1993. In reaction to the events of 9/11, Keith wrote the song "Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue (The Angry American)" which struck a chord with military personnel, but not without a little controversy. The title and the bursting fireworks on the cover of Shock'n Y'all—not to mention the songs "American Soldier" and "Taliban Song"—played off of the patriotic political identity Keith had earned over the previous two years.
Jimmy Wayne and Penn & Teller present Toby Keith with the Album of the Year Award for "Shock'n Y'all." He thanks the music industry, God, James Stroud, DreamWorks Records, songwriters, and the musicians who played on the album. Stroud also thanks the Dreamworks team.
2003 Country singer Toby Keith's sixth album Shock'n Y'all, his third-straight #1 country album, became his second-straight #1 pop album when it topped the Billboard 200 album chart on this day in 2003. (The title of the album was a pun on the so-called "Shock and Awe" bombing campaign that preceded the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in March 2003). The album has been certified 4× Platinum in the U.S. for shipments in excess of 4 million units.
'I Love This Bar', 'American Soldier' and 'Whiskey Girl' were the three tracks from the album to be released as singles, and all reached Number One on the Hot Country Songs charts. "I Love This Bar" has inspired a chain of restaurants that Keith has launched under the name I Love This Bar And Grill.A Bit of Shockin' Trivia...
True to his musical persona, Keith was defiant in the face of such criticism. When the Dixie Chicks themselves became the objects of a country-radio boycott following controversial comments made onstage by Natalie Maines about the impending invasion of Iraq, Toby Keith took to performing in front of a gigantic backdrop featuring a doctored photograph of Maines standing next to deposed Iraqi dictator Sadaam Hussein. [Source: This Day in History]
And the music goes on beating to the rhythm of the changing times...
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