Blake Shelton Shares A Tribute For His 'Hero' And 'Inspiration' Toby Keith Following His Death

Country singer Toby Keith passed away on February 5. The singer breathed his last while he was surrounded by his family. The singer’s family took to X (formerly, known as Twitter) to share the news. The news of his death sent shockwaves among fans and other artists. Recently, Blake Shelton took to his social media to remember the singer who was also his close friend.

Blake Shelton took to his social media platform to mourn the loss of Toby Keith. He wrote about Toby’s battle with cancer and called him his brother, friend, hero, and inspiration. Blake Shelton wrote, “Even though I knew about your battle these last few months I still never imagined this day. Anyone who knew you knows what I mean. You were the toughest man I ever met. Thank you, brother, for being a friend, a hero, and an inspiration. There will never be another Toby Keith.”

Blake Shelton’s tweet has fetched over 63K likes. Take a look at his tweet here.

Reacting to the tweet, one fan wrote, “He was loved by our Veteran community, Blake. As a cancer survivor, this is sad to hear. Thank you for your comments, May God be with his entire family.” A second fan said, “Very few legends left in country music. He was definitely one of them. Cheers to one of the last cowboys - I will raise a glass to him and listen to his music until the day I get to meet him again in the next life.” A third fan wrote, “Man I don't get broke up about most celebrities, but Toby Keith was a man who seemed genuine in his songs and got into country music.  What a great artist and unique voice to music. RIP!”

Blake Shelton and Toby Keith go a long way. Last year, Shelton presented Keith with the country music icon award at the 2023 People’s Choice Country Awards. During the ceremony, Keith spoke to PEOPLE and talked about their bond. The late singer said, “I took him out when I first got headliner status early on and I was his first big tour he got. He lived in Oklahoma, so we're kindred spirits, a lot alike. We have fun together.” Toby and Blake are from Oklahoma.