The performances in Oklahoma marked the country star’s first shows since he announced his cancer diagnosis in June 2022
Toby Keith made a triumphant return to the stage over the holiday weekend for a pair of surprise performances, his first since announcing his stomach cancer diagnosis last summer.
The country star, 61, smiled and sang his way through two two-and-a-half-hour long shows at Hollywood Corners, the bar and music venue he owns in Norman, Oklahoma, on June 30 and July 1.
“Toby’s first rehearsal turned into a 2½ hour pop-up show,” a July 1 Instagram post on his page read. “He sang all the hits plus the Bus Songs…Toby is back!”
The next night, Keith posted once more, sharing additional photos that featured him laughing with a guitar in hand beside longtime friend and collaborator Scotty Emerick.
The performances marked the first set of shows for Keith since announced in June 2022 that he’d been diagnosed with stomach cancer the previous fall, and was receiving chemo, radiation and surgery.
Last month, the “I Love This Bar” singer shared a health update with The Oklahoman, and said he was “feeling pretty good,” and hoped to tour again by the end of the year if he could keep his strength up.
“Basically, everything is in a real positive trend. You never know with cancer, so you have to prepare,” he said. “I’ve got more wind. And I’m thinking about bringing the band in and setting up, playing two or three days somewhere just to see if I can get through two hours.”
He continued: “All I gotta do is see if I can get through two or three nights of work and get a little break in this chemo, and we’ll go back to work… I’m ready. That’s living.”
Keith told the outlet that he was still undergoing chemotherapy, but his blood tests were improving and his tumor had shrunk by a third. He also said he was receiving immunotherapy treatment and seeing a nutritionist.
The star had previously expressed interest in performing again once his health was in check, as he told CMT in December he needed “a little bit of time to just rest up and heal up” before doing so.
