Toby Keith’s Publicist Punts on Drunk Concert
72 hours have passed since Toby Keith delivered a drunken performance at the Klipsch Music Center just outside of Indianapolis on Saturday Night, and angry fans, some of which spent upwards of $300 for tickets, have still yet to receive any apologies or explanation. Though the complicit country music media has completely avoided this story, many major local news outlets in Indianapolis and elsewhere, including CBS WISH Channel 8, WTHR Channel 13, The Indianapolis Star, and KFOR-TV in Toby’s home state of Oklahoma, have been talking about the Toby Keith concert debacle today. Live Nation and the The Klipsch Music Center continue to refuse to comment on the situation, and there still has been no official word from Toby Keith himself.
Jeff Wagner of CBS WISH in Indianapolis did however speak with Toby Keith’s publicist, but not much explanation was given, and there certainly wasn’t an apology. “She told me she’s seen hundreds of his shows, and that he’s never had too much to drink. But she admitted, she didn’t attend this specific concert,” Jeff Wagner says in his report (see below). Later in the report Wagner says that Keith’s publicist told him, “‘All concert goers are entitled to their opinion,’ and that she’s seen a large amount of positive reviews to go along with the negative ones across social media.”Â
But many others tell a much different story, including Ashley Mayhew, who was one of the concert goers who tweeted out that Live Nation, the Klipsh Music Center, and Toby Keith should at least acknowledge what happened after the concert. “A lot of people have said ‘Well he sings about bars, he sings about drinking, and that’s what he represents.’ But I kind of feel like Jimmy Buffett sings about drinking and partying, but he doesn’t show up to his shows wasted away in Margaritaville … People make mistakes, but this was an entire concert of slurred words, eyes closed, it was just a disappointment.”
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If Toby Keith would simply say something like, “Sorry folks, had a little too much to drink Saturday night. I apologize if I ruined anyone’s good time and I promise next time I roll through town I’ll make it up to you,” then this issue would go away. But with Live Nation and Toby Keith refusing to address this situation, fans are feeling even more disrespected than they were on Saturday night. As concert attendee Ashley Mayhew said, “We all make mistakes.” But if Toby Keith refuses to acknowledge his mistakes, and his publicist is saying, “he’s never had too much to drink“—clearly an incorrect assessment of Saturday night—what confidence do fans have that this won’t happen again at another concert, or that Keith’s state-of-mind and drinking habits are in order?
The attendees to Toby Keith’s Klipsch Music Center deserve an apology, if not a refund. And ignoring the problem at this point has only made it worse.
READ: Watch & Hear Drunk Toby Keith / Toby Refuses To Acknowledge Issue
September 16, 2014 @ 6:21 pm
Good. It needs to get media attention. That kind of performance would cause any normal worker and even most TV or sports stars to loose their jobs, or at least get suspended or fined.
September 17, 2014 @ 10:11 am
I completely disagree. I hate Toby Keith personally but he is human. People have problems. Is it ok that he showed up extremely intoxicated? no. but i dont think he should be beaten into the ground for it. And maybe Rolling Stones didn’t say anything about it because of the large amount of other artists from all genres that show up to a show intoxicated or high. Its a common occurrence and always has been. Keith Whitley had a huge drinking problem(don’t downplay it, my nephew and sister is related). should he have been ostracized from the country community because of it? I don’t think you people realize that this has been happening, especially in country whether you want to like it or not for a real long time. Hell Hank Williams is a much better example of this than Whitley is. Get the hell off Toby Keiths nuts and find something informative to post about.
September 17, 2014 @ 12:04 pm
Nobody is saying Toby Keith should be “beaten to the ground” for this. Nobody is saying this circumstance is exceptional in country music. For some reason there’s this sentiment out there by some that this is being made into some huge deal, when really all you have is attendees to the concert asking for an apology. The only reason there has been three stories about this incident is because Toby Keith and Live Nation refuse to acknowledge or apologize about it, but even then, nowhere have I or anyone else said it is exceptional. In fairness though, to say this is “common” is also misleading. It is NOT common, either for Toby Keith, or for any country performer.
“Get the hell off Toby Keiths nuts and find something informative to post about.”
Here’s the articles that have been posted in the midst of this Toby Keith story. If you choose to ignore them, this is a commentary on your reading habits, not this site’s coverage.
https://www.savingcountrymusic.com/how-billboards-new-consumption-chart-could-have-a-big-impact
https://www.savingcountrymusic.com/radney-foster-has-10-guitars-custom-amp-stolen
https://www.savingcountrymusic.com/steelisms-615-to-fame-puts-sidemen-in-the-spotlight
https://www.savingcountrymusic.com/johnny-cashs-black-rolls-royce-up-for-sale
https://www.savingcountrymusic.com/steve-earles-hank-williams-book-to-be-made-into-movie-by-chris-hemsworth
September 28, 2014 @ 9:12 pm
I saw Toby in Spokane a couple of days ago and he was so drunk it was sad…really distracts from the good time the concert should be.
As an RN treating people with alcohol abuse issues, Toby needs help. Alcohol abuse only leads to two things….an early death or jail. That’s no life……
September 16, 2014 @ 6:21 pm
Look at you! …being all famous and shit! 🙂
September 16, 2014 @ 6:22 pm
Talk about a lot of free face time for the website. that is one good thing from this story.
September 16, 2014 @ 6:31 pm
I wonder if an apology would trigger anything in his contract with Ford and that’s why everyone’s been so quiet? Essentially, he’s an employee of Ford. Although not as bad as getting a DUI, public intoxication and vehicles never mix. If he were to apologize, he might stand to loose millions. Those sponsors are always looking for ways out of expensive endorsements.
September 16, 2014 @ 6:31 pm
What a farce.
Anyone that’s followed Country Music Awards shows in years past, useless spectacles they are, can attest to the fact that TK has been at Awards shows, as well as accepted awards, totally crocked.
The simple fact that his camp is denying the fact that he was drunk, and that he never plays shows drunk is a weak attempt to cover his tracks.
At this point in his career, he should be extremely grateful that people are still showing up at his shows. He’s ok as an artist, has carved his niche out and milked it for what it’s worth, and good for him, but that DOES NOT excuse this kind of entitled, disrespectful behaviour when it comes to fans…who are paying customers. If I were an attendee at this show, I would demand my money back.
On the flip side of things, TK is certainly not the only country star to pull this crap. We’ve all heard about Hank Jr. and his carrying on, but guys like Johnny Cash, Waylon, and George Jones have done exactly the same thing. Not saying that excuses TK, but it’s happened before.
As someone who attends concerts on a regular basis, it costs good money to go see an artist perform. The least they can do is have enough respect to show up and perform in a coherent state. You wanna get drunk after the show? Have at ‘er. But don’t waste the time, money, and effort I put in to attend your show. To me, that’s inexcusable.
September 16, 2014 @ 6:47 pm
“Never” is a very strong word, and that’s pretty insulting language from his publicist.
September 19, 2014 @ 6:24 pm
Indeed it is, Trigger. Truth is, his people should know that attempting to deal in absolutes, like saying he “never” performs drunk is just asking for trouble, and also asking for people to refute this idiotic claim.
As folks have mentioned before as well, in this digital age of phones that record video, it’s harder and harder to deny incidents like this.
In my opinion, Keith has lost any credibility he had left. Once he starts to ostracize and alienate his loyal fan base like this, he’s making a huge mistake.
September 16, 2014 @ 7:00 pm
Toby Keith and his “team” have gone into radio silence. That is the corporate response
that works when honesty and candor would hurt the bottom line. Some would say
that it is a common sense business tactic. But it is what it smells like. It is arrogant cowardice.
I’m disappointed in Keith. Not that he has made a fool of himself, we have all done that, but that he hasn’t shown the guts to “man up”.
September 16, 2014 @ 7:00 pm
Toby Keith and his “team” have gone into radio silence. That is the corporate response
that works when honesty and candor would hurt the bottom line. Some would say
that it is a common sense business tactic. But it is what it smells like. It is arrogant cowardice.
I’m disappointed in Keith. Not that he has made a fool of himself, we have all done that, but that he hasn’t shown the guts to “man up”.
September 16, 2014 @ 7:04 pm
I don’t think you would have ever seen George Strait pull a stunt like this.
September 16, 2014 @ 8:14 pm
I would bet all the money I’ve spent on his cds, tickets to his shows, and concert t-shirts over the years that Strait has never done such a thing. I realize it averages out to about a show a year, but I saw George Strait 16 times from 1996 to last year and he gave the fans his absolute best at every single show I had the fortune to see.
Toby Keith’s flaws as an artist are legion. That he is no George Strait on any level is but one of them.
September 17, 2014 @ 4:48 am
I only got to see George Strait once and it was on his final tour, but it was definitely one of the best shows I’ve ever been to, if not the best.
September 17, 2014 @ 8:29 am
Yup. I can assure you he was just that good at least as far back as 1996.
Speaking of George, that new cd recorded at the last show in Arlington is really good. I very much recommend it.
September 17, 2014 @ 9:18 am
Picked it up yesterday and listened to it last night!
September 16, 2014 @ 7:08 pm
He has some ok songs, but has always come across as an egotistical dickhead to me. Kind of a bully, kind of a blowhard, but still a bit of a douche… You know the type, usually wearing something with Ed Hardy written on it.
He needs to address this in some way because disappointing, then ignoring the complaints of your fans is just a total jackass move.
September 16, 2014 @ 7:35 pm
In my opinion, Toby hasn’t been good since his first Greatest Hits CD. He’s put out a few good songs here and there, but when he started his How Do You Like Me Now era, he’s become more about Shock and Awe than about the music.
September 16, 2014 @ 8:03 pm
His Cletus T Judd era. Seems like he was writing dumb songs just so Cletus could parody them into something even dumber.
Irrelevant side note: Cletus is now a dj on a local station here. His ex wife/baby mamma Julie Reeves works at another station and came home to dj when she couldn’t make it as a singer.
September 16, 2014 @ 8:34 pm
I believe Ashley Mayhew’s quite in this article is the most objectionable!! Everyone wants to jump to criticize, and assume the worst of Toby but have you. I there’d to stop and think of what might’ve really happened? I’ve only seen ONE video showing this claim, and in that song only one part of it is less than clear on what he’s singing, but when he started the song and continued finishing the song it was no different than usual. You’d think if he’d done it to so many songs like people are claiming that there would be more proof out there, I mean they said there was 24,000 people there! What happened to human error, we all possess that talent, and out of the approximate 21 years he’s been touring and making music, there’s only one other time people insinuate this same type incident, yet there’s no proof at all to that event either, mere speculation. If Toby did wrong by all his fans, he will prevail that’s the kind of man he is, but it will be in his time, his way, and his truest of fans will be right there waiting, having his back! I don’t general participate on these comment things but until Toby has spoken, give it a rest already!!!
September 17, 2014 @ 5:57 am
“……..until Toby has spoken, give it a rest already!!!”
But that’s the whole point; Toby HASN’T spoken and it doesn’t appear as if he has any intention of doing so.
September 16, 2014 @ 9:46 pm
Please be sober the next time we pay you to sing about being drunk, dear sir.
Look at the current hot country songs on Billboard: 17 of the 25 songs reference booze in the lyrics. Six of them actually mention or allude to alcohol in the song title (“Bartender”/”Drunk on a Plane”/”Neon Light”/”Sunshine and Whiskey”/”Day Drinking”/”Cold One”). It just shows how inauthentic the whole business has become.
September 17, 2014 @ 1:37 am
Maybe he’ll realize his 20 plus year drinking phase of his current career isn’t worth the weight of his potential. (See Jason Isbell)
Then again, it’s Toby Keith.
September 17, 2014 @ 5:09 am
Glad this is getting covered, so that concert-goers can correctly choose to boycott future Toby Keith shows.
And please stop clicking on any web site that doesn’t cover this. They deserve to be boycotted as well.
September 17, 2014 @ 5:24 am
Just jumped on Rolling Stone country, couldn’t find a thing about this. Color me shocked! Nice to see they are already irrelevant.
September 17, 2014 @ 7:06 am
He had a bad show by some accounts and by video evidence; that most likely was caused by being over served. Ok, so have lots of artists. If it was a night after night issue then ok but one time, that we are aware of, is a bit of a over reaction.With all the ties TK has with sponsors etc, is am is likely why they are not acknowledging the situation. This will blow over and he will most likely do better at the next gig so lets move on.
September 17, 2014 @ 9:20 am
If you bought a Ford truck and it performed like Keith did at this concert, you’d take it back to the dealer and ask for a refund under the Lemon Law.
September 17, 2014 @ 10:16 am
Actually you probably wouldn’t need to deal with lemon laws, Ford would likely just take care of the problem.
September 17, 2014 @ 11:29 am
Unless you were at the concert…and I was, you can’t defend him. It was a drunken slurring toby that we all saw. Even leaving the stage at one point to pee….he offended our military guest that were in attendance by referring to them as mother f@$ kers!
That was so hurtful! There were a lot of children in attendance and he was cussing like there was no tomorrow! He forgot the words to his own songs and made some kind of mumbling sentence to try to make up for it…at one point even turning to his band mates and mouthed…I fucked that up! He knew he messed up and that never stopped him from tipping his red solo cup every 10 seconds! I wasted 400.00 to see a drunk dumbass that night when I went to see Toby Keith!
September 17, 2014 @ 4:41 pm
lesson learned: don’t spend $400 on a concert ticket… ever!
a $200 dollar bud light still tastes like bud light.
September 17, 2014 @ 12:10 pm
No matter what this man does or how bad he performs his legion of zombie fans will support him. I bet if he committed a crime they would say it was not his fault. Get real folks; he has a drinking problem and has had one for years. His dad was an alcoholic and he is the same or pretty damn close. I had friends who were at the show and left due to his drunkeness. This is NOT the first time nor will it be the last. No he is not the exception to this behavior but I think it is high time the man grows up & realizes he is not living in a college frat house acting a fool with his red solo cup. He used to give you a great concert, now it’s like “Whatever” and I find that unsettling.
September 18, 2014 @ 9:24 am
Pretty cool that you got a spot on the news in my home town, just goes to show people are actually paying attention to the demise and hopefully reconstruction of country music
September 18, 2014 @ 10:40 am
Sure isn’t much on youtube Personally I don’t think hes drunk he sounds tired to me obiously these people haven’t seen drunk
September 18, 2014 @ 11:22 am
What’s so hard about admitting a mistake, particularly one that was caught on multiple recording devices, and making it up.
He’s not the first artist to screw up like this, but admitting the mistake and remedying it would go a long way to making him look like a stand-up person.
April 17, 2015 @ 7:35 am
Typical right-wing behavior. Do the deed but never admit to it.