The 2024 CMT Music Awards honored Toby Keith with a three-song tribute featuring Brooks & Dunn, Sammy Hagar and Lainey Wilson. Brooks & Dunn performed “Should’ve Been a Cowboy,” Hagar sang “I Love This Bar,” and Wilson performed “How Do You Like Me Now?!” Keith’s longtime band backed the musical performances, while Lukas Nelson and Roger Clemens also appeared in connection with the segment.
The tribute aired live on CBS on Sunday, April 7, 2024, from Austin’s Moody Center, roughly two months after Keith died at age 62 following a battle with stomach cancer.
Which songs were performed in the Toby Keith tribute?
| Performer | Song | Why it mattered to Keith’s career |
|---|---|---|
| Brooks & Dunn | “Should’ve Been a Cowboy” | Keith’s 1993 debut single and first No. 1 country hit |
| Sammy Hagar | “I Love This Bar” | A signature barroom anthem from Keith’s 2003 album Shock’n Y’all |
| Lainey Wilson | “How Do You Like Me Now?!” | The title track of Keith’s 1999 album and an important mainstream breakthrough |
The sequence presented three recognizable sides of Keith’s public musical identity: the young country dreamer in “Should’ve Been a Cowboy,” the larger-than-life entertainer behind “I Love This Bar,” and the confident, confrontational hitmaker of “How Do You Like Me Now?!”
Keith’s longtime band served as the backing ensemble. Lukas Nelson and former Major League Baseball pitcher Roger Clemens were also listed among the special appearances connected with the tribute. The available event information establishes the performers and songs, but not that every number was performed in full or that the artists had a live collaboration with Keith before his death.
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Why the CMT tribute was especially meaningful
This was more than a general industry remembrance. Keith had a long and unusually close relationship with the CMT Music Awards.
According to CMT’s announcement, Keith received 30 nominations, won seven awards and performed on the program 13 times, including appearances in 10 consecutive years. He also co-hosted the event twice: the 2003 ceremony, then known as the CMT Flameworthy Video Awards, with Pamela Anderson, and the 2012 show with Kristen Bell.
That history made the tribute specifically tied to CMT’s own archive. Keith was not simply a country star being honored by a television network; he had been one of the network’s recurring performers, hosts and award recipients.
A tribute staged soon after Toby Keith’s death
Keith died on February 5, 2024, at 62, after a battle with stomach cancer. The CMT Music Awards tribute followed on April 7, about two months later, and arrived during a year in which he was also posthumously inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.
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Entertainment coverage of the broadcast described the segment as emotional and reported that Keith’s children appeared visibly moved. Those observations belong to the contemporaneous coverage of the ceremony rather than to an independently measured account, but they underscored the personal weight of the performance.
How the three-song set traced Keith’s career
“Should’ve Been a Cowboy”: the breakthrough
Brooks & Dunn opened the musical remembrance with “Should’ve Been a Cowboy.” Released as Keith’s debut single in 1993, it became his first No. 1 country hit and established the western imagery that would remain part of his public persona.
Using Brooks & Dunn for the song connected Keith’s earliest commercial success to another major country duo with a deep history in the genre. It also gave the tribute an obvious starting point: the ambitious young artist imagining the life he might have led before becoming a country headliner.
“I Love This Bar”: the crowd-pleasing entertainer
Sammy Hagar followed with “I Love This Bar,” one of Keith’s best-known barroom songs. The track appeared on the 2003 album Shock’n Y’all and represents Keith’s talent for turning an expansive, communal setting into a country-music anthem.
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Hagar’s presence also broadened the tribute beyond a strictly traditional country lineup. The performance connected Keith’s larger-than-life bar-and-American identity with a rock singer known for arena-scale entertainment.
“How Do You Like Me Now?!”: the hitmaker at full confidence
Lainey Wilson performed “How Do You Like Me Now?!”, the title track of Keith’s 1999 album. The song’s self-assured attitude and mainstream reach made it a fitting choice for the later part of the tribute.
Wilson’s performance represented a connection between Keith’s generation and a newer era of country music. It also completed the set’s broad career arc: debut, signature anthem and major late-1990s hit.
Keith’s recorded legacy in context
The exact size of Keith’s catalog varies according to the source and counting method. CMT’s contemporaneous announcement cited 61 entries on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart, including 32 No. 1 hits and 42 additional top-10 songs. Keith’s official biography, using a different presentation, reports 42 top-10 hits, 33 No. 1s, more than 44 million albums sold and more than 10 billion streams.
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Those figures should not be combined into one definitive total because the official sources use different categories and counting conventions. Together, however, they convey the scale of the career represented by the tribute: the three songs performed at the ceremony were important signposts, not a complete catalog retrospective.
Where to hear the songs after the broadcast
The televised segment was a tribute performance, not a release of a CMT concert recording. Readers who want the original Toby Keith recordings should look for catalog compilations instead.
Listen or collect
Toby Keith’s Greatest Hits: The Show Dog Years CD collects songs from Keith’s later Show Dog period, including tracks such as “Don’t Let the Old Man In,” “Red Solo Cup,” “Made in America” and “Hope on the Rocks.” It is a catalog release, not the audio from the 2024 CMT tribute.
For collectors, 35 Biggest Hits on vinyl is a three-LP collection that includes all three songs represented in the CMT segment: “Should’ve Been a Cowboy,” “How Do You Like Me Now?!” and “I Love This Bar.” Retail availability, sellers and prices can change, so check the current listing before buying.
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Other relevant releases include 100% Songwriter, a collection of 13 songs Keith wrote himself, and the remastered Should’ve Been a Cowboy (25th Anniversary Edition). Availability for these formats may vary by retailer and region.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.A separate CMT Toby Keith special
CMT also announced a separate one-hour program, CMT Music Awards Celebrates Toby Keith, initially listed as a working title. It was scheduled for April 11, 2024, from 10 to 11 p.m. Eastern and Pacific time on CMT, with a focus on memorable Keith appearances and performances from the network’s archive.
That program was distinct from the tribute segment broadcast during the 2024 CMT Music Awards on April 7. The two should not be confused with tributes to Keith at the 2024 ACM Awards or with later concerts and memorial events.
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Frequently Asked Questions
When did the Toby Keith tribute air on the CMT Music Awards?
It aired during the 2024 CMT Music Awards on Sunday, April 7, 2024. The ceremony was broadcast live on CBS from the Moody Center in Austin, Texas.
Who performed in the Toby Keith tribute?
Brooks & Dunn performed “Should’ve Been a Cowboy,” Sammy Hagar performed “I Love This Bar,” and Lainey Wilson performed “How Do You Like Me Now?!” Toby Keith’s longtime band backed the musical performances. Lukas Nelson and Roger Clemens also appeared in connection with the segment.
Did the tribute include Toby Keith performing?
No. Keith died on February 5, 2024. The segment was a posthumous musical tribute featuring other performers interpreting his songs.
Is there an album of the televised CMT tribute?
The releases discussed here are Toby Keith catalog compilations, not recordings of the televised CMT performances. No claim should be made that those CDs or vinyl collections contain the broadcast tribute.
The Bottom Line
The 2024 CMT Music Awards tribute honored Toby Keith through three carefully chosen career markers: Brooks & Dunn’s “Should’ve Been a Cowboy,” Sammy Hagar’s “I Love This Bar” and Lainey Wilson’s “How Do You Like Me Now?!” With Keith’s longtime band providing the musical foundation, the segment served as both a memorial and a reminder of how deeply he was woven into CMT’s history.
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