Country music icon Toby Keith, who passed away last month, has been posthumously honored with induction into the Country Music Hall of Fame.
During the induction ceremony held on Monday, Country Music Association CEO Sarah Trahern revealed that Keith had been elected in the Modern Era category just hours after news of his passing emerged.
Trahern expressed deep sorrow upon waking to the heartbreaking news of Keith’s loss to stomach cancer, stating, “My heart sank, knowing that we missed the chance to inform Toby while he was still with us. But I have no doubt that he is smiling down on us, knowing that he’ll always be, as he once said, ‘as good as he once was.'”
She clarified that while the rules typically prohibit posthumous inductions, Keith had already been selected prior to his passing. The voting process concluded on February 2, with official results tallied by February 6, a day after Keith’s demise.
In addition to Keith, the ceremony also announced the induction of singer John Anderson and guitarist James Burton.
Keith, who passed away on February 5 at the age of 62 after battling stomach cancer since the fall of 2021, leaves behind a legacy marked by 32 No. 1 hits and 42 songs in the Top 10 of Billboard’s country music chart. Among his notable works is the 1993 single “Should’ve Been a Cowboy.”
