Family, friends, and fans are mourning the death of country singer Toby Keith, who died on February 5 at the age of 62. His passing follows his stomach cancer diagnosis back in 2021. He leaves behind wife Tricia Lucus, to whom he’s been married since 1984, and with whom he shared a unique, enduring bond that was defined by joy and grief.
Indeed, Tricia was with Keith when he passed, surrounded by family, as she had been right beside him throughout the journey of his career. When Keith was honored at the People’s Choice Country Awards and given the chance to perform, his wife walked the red carpet with him and gave a tearful reaction to him singing “Don’t Let the Old Man In.” That is all the more meaningful after his passing.
Toby Keith and his wife Tricia Lucus attended the People’s Choice Country Awards together
The country icon, who died this week, is survived by two daughters and a son he shared with wife Tricia Lucus. https://t.co/1CdCyawnNx
— TODAY (@TODAYshow) February 6, 2024
The 2023 People’s Choice Country Awards were held at the Grand Ole Opry on September 23, 2023, and saw Keith bestowed with the Country Icon Award, celebrating his career that spanned over 30 years. It would be one of the last large-scale venues he attended before his passing.
RELATED: Country Singer Toby Keith Dies At 62 Following Battle With Stomach Cancer
“I want to thank the Almighty for allowing me to be here tonight, he’s been riding shotgun with me for a little while now,” said Keith during the big celebration, adding, “I want to thank my beautiful family that’s here.” Sure enough, right there was his wife Tricia, decked out in a white lacy three-piece outfit with matching shoes, silver jewelry, and a fond smile for her husband of 40 years.
Blake Shelton honored Keith that night by performing, “Who’s Your Daddy?” before Ketih was presented with the trophy. Not long after, it was Keith’s turn to sing, and his song of choice, “Don’t Let the Old Man In,” was enough to draw tears from his wife.
Tricia was brought to tears watching Keith perform “Don’t Let the Old Man In”
Released in December 2018, “Don’t Let the Old Man In” appears in The Mule. Earlier that year, Keith had met actor-director Clint Eastwood at a charity golf tournament. Keith was impressed by Eastwood’s vitality at the age of then-88. In response, Eastwood said, “I don’t let the old man in.”
The statement stayed with Keith, who used it as the theme in his song all about a man dealing with his increasing age; Billboard writer Cathy Applefield Olson called the song “at once emotionally resigned and quietly triumphant.”
All that and more came across when Keith sang at the People’s Choice Country Awards, two years after his cancer diagnosis. After the ceremony, the track rocketed to the No. 1 spot on the iTunes country chart. Its impact was resounding long after he finished singing, but the whole time that he did sing, Tricia was in tears through the whole song.