Top Country Artists Honor Toby Keith With Exclusive New 6-Song Collection

Top Country Artists Celebrate Toby Keith’s Upcoming Birthday

Late icon Toby Keith left an undeniable mark on country music and American culture. With 20 number-one hits and five number-one albums, the Country Music Hall of Fame member will always be remembered as one of the greatest in the genre.

Toby’s death on February 5th, 2024, rocked the country music community, but demand and appreciation for his music have only increased. As fans remembered the beloved singer, his music jumped back to the top of the charts, and he received five new posthumous certifications from the RIAA.

To celebrate what would have been his 64th birthday on July 8th, 2025, Megan Moroney, Riley Green, Parker McCollum, Ella Langley, Tucker Wetmore, and Ashley McBryde have teamed up to release a collection of six Toby Keith covers, available exclusively on Apple Music.

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Listen to the collection in its entirety and learn why each artist chose their song below!

Megan Moroney Covers “Who’s Your Daddy?”

“Who’s Your Daddy?” was released in 2002 as the second single from the Unleashed album. It was Toby’s sixth consecutive single to top the Billboard country charts. Megan Moroney says the song is a regular part of her routine while on tour.

“It is my band’s hype song that we play before every single show, so much so that it made it into our preshow playlist. It hypes me up, it gets me ready for a show, and it’s just iconic.”

Riley Green Covers “Should’ve Been A Cowboy”

Widely known as Toby Keith’s signature song, “Should’ve Been A Cowboy” was his debut single in 1993. Riley Green recalls why he has always had a fondness for the song:

“I think because growing up in Alabama, we didn’t have a lot of cowboys. We didn’t have horses; we didn’t have big, long pastures like they got out in Texas and Oklahoma and all that. For me, that lifestyle of being out on the open range was so foreign to me, but also just seemed cool. I loved that song as a kid.”

Parker McCollum Covers “Who’s That Man?”

Parker McCollum says that one of Toby Keith’s most vulnerable songs, “Who’s That Man?,” is one of his “favorite country songs of all time.” Released in 1994, the single became the second #1 of Toby’s career.

“I feel like as a songwriter, I’m always trying to write songs from that perspective of the sad, heartbreak love songs about everything going terribly wrong, which this song encapsulates pretty well. You never had to wonder whose song it was when you heard a Toby song, and this one’s at the top of my list in his catalog. It’s an honor to get to do it.”

Ella Langley Covers “Wish I Didn’t Know Now”

Ella Langley says she was inspired by Toby being the “full package.” She recorded her rendition of the 1993 hit “Wish I Didn’t Know Now” to channel that energy.

“Everywhere he goes, and onstage, he gives 100% of himself. When he’s writing a song, he gives 100% of himself. I think that’s what it takes to be an artist like Toby Keith: giving your all, letting your fans in, and seeing who you are as a human being, because we’re just human beings at the end of the day. Whether it was through being onstage or being in a writers’ room, he just told the truth and was honest about what he believed in. It’s inspiring.”

Tucker Wetmore Covers “As Good As I Once Was”

“As Good As I Once Was” is the most recently recorded song in the collection, released in 2005. Rising star Tucker Wetmore pays homage to Toby Keith’s legacy with his rendition.

“When I hear the word ‘legacy,’ I think of legends, and Toby Keith is definitely one of those legends in my book,” says Tucker Wetmore. “Like the old saying goes, legends never die, and neither will his music. Toby Keith’s music, in three words, is legendary, nostalgic, and just something that’ll never grow old.”

Ashley McBryde Covers “A Little Less Talk And A Lot More Action”

Ashley McBryde remembers hearing “A Little Less Talk And A Lot More Action” when she was just 10 years old. It was originally recorded by fellow country star Hank Williams, Jr. in 1992. Toby’s version dropped the following year.

“When I think of the word ‘honky-tonk’ and what that would sound like, this is one of my references, like Brooks & Dunn would be a reference. Mark Chesnutt would be a reference. Toby Keith is definitely a reference, especially this song. And then, in my adult life, this song has stayed on my playlist, my bonfire playlist, my go-hang-out-on-a-boat-with-my-friends playlist, or pools or whatever the event is. This is one of my mainstays.”