Toby Keith appears at Jason Aldean's OKC concert, 'getting ready to go back to work'

Toby Keith continued what he's playfully dubbed his "rehab tour" Friday night with a surprise performance of his seminal hit "Should've Been a Cowboy" during fellow country music star Jason Aldean's sold-out show at Oklahoma City's Paycom Center.

"When you come to Oklahoma City, there's only one guy you kind of think of," the "Try That in a Small Town" hitmaker said as he introduced the Oklahoma Hall of Famer's surprise performance.

The OKC crowd exploded into wild cheers as Keith strolled into the spotlight, but Aldean can be seen in videos from the show still urging his fans to "make some noise for the Big Dog Daddy."

"I'm on my rehab tour," Keith quipped to more cheers from the audience, plus smiles and applause from Aldean. "If I ain't at my bar, I'm down at Hollywood Corners — or I'm on stage with Jason Aldean. But the Almighty's been riding shotgun, and my a-- is getting ready to go back to work."

Keith, who has been fighting stomach cancer for the past two years, performed his debut chart-topper "Should've Been a Cowboy" Friday night, with Aldean backing him on vocals and guitar and the whole crowd wailing along.

Just before launching into the first chorus of the familiar hit, Keith dropped the sunglasses perched on his white ballcap over his eyes. The Songwriters Hall of Famer eventually turned the vocals of a full chorus over to the enthusiastic fans, encouraging their crooning with a "Yeehaw!"

After Friday's concert, Aldean gushed on social media about having Keith perform on the OKC stop on his "Highway Desperado Tour."

"Sometimes you just have one of those special nights that you will never forget. I had one of those tonight in Oklahoma City. Thank you to a true f---ing legend Toby Keith for coming out tonite. Mad respect and u brought the house down big Dawg," Aldean posted on social media.

Toby Keith's surprise OKC performance is the latest sign of his comeback from cancer

Keith's comments about the Almighty "riding shotgun" echoed his acceptance speech at the Sept. 28 People’s Choice Country Awards, where fellow Oklahoma country music star Blake Shelton presented the singer-songwriter with the new award show's inaugural Country Icon Award.

"Bet y'all never thought you'd see me in skinny jeans," Keith joked, cradling the Country Icon trophy during the live NBC telecast from the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville, Tennessee.

"I want to thank the Almighty for allowing me to be here tonight. He's been riding shotgun with me for a little while."

In June 2022, Keith revealed that he had been battling stomach cancer since fall 2021 and had already spent the past six months undergoing chemotherapy, radiation and surgery.

Almost a year after the announcement, Keith, 62, told The Oklahoman in an exclusive interview that he felt his health had improved enough to plan a fall comeback, including a return to touring.  

"I'm feeling pretty good. ... Basically, everything is in a real positive trend. You never know with cancer, so you have to prepare. But my goal is, I feel better; 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," Keith told The Oklahoman backstage at Norman's Riverwind Casino during the June 2 pre-tournament gala for his 19th Annual Toby Keith & Friends Golf Classic. 

"And if I do, (I'll) be out on the road this fall." 

A few weeks later, the country music superstar, who was born in Clinton, raised in Moore and lives in Norman, gave his first public performances since announcing his cancer diagnosis.

Hundreds turned out to see Keith play two secret hometown pop-up concerts June 30 and July 1 at Hollywood Corners, the historic 1920s roadhouse and service station in north Norman that Keith bought in 2015 and revamped into a roadside deli, bar and music venue. 

Toby Keith's comeback sends his 2018 song 'Don't Let the Old Man In' to the top of the charts

Fans have warmly welcomed Keith's return to the public eye. A well-known University of Oklahoma superfan, Keith went viral when he posed for photos with star pitcher Jordy Bahl after the dominating OU softball team beat Florida State June 9 in the Women's College World Series finals at Hall of Fame Stadium in OKC.

The Sooners celebrated winning their seventh national softball title at one of Keith's I Love This Bar & Grill restaurants, and video of the hitmaker and several OU players belting his 1999 smash "How Do You Like Me Now?!" at the party also garnered thousands of positive responses online.

After he gave a fervent performance at the People’s Choice Country Awards of "Don't Let the Old Man In," the 5-year-old song and its music video were boosted into the No. 1 spot on the iTunes country songs and video charts and into the top three in the all-genre charts.

"Don't Let the Old Man In," which was featured in Clint Eastwood's acclaimed 2018 film "The Mule," last week hit No. 1 on Billboard's Country Digital Song Sales chart and jumped into the top three on the all-genre Digital Song Sales list.

In an exclusive 2018 interview with The Oklahoman, Keith said he was inspired to write the affecting ballad after he was partnered with Eastwood that year at the Hollywood icon's golf tournament in Carmel, California. When Keith asked Eastwood what he had planned for his 88th birthday just days away, the five-time Oscar winner, now 93, said he was leaving the next day to spend three months filming a new movie.

"I said, 'What keeps you going?' and he said, 'I get up every day and don't let the old man in.' So, I came home, wrote a song for him called 'Don't Let the Old Man In' and sent it to him. And he put it in his movie," Keith told The Oklahoman in 2018.

"He absolutely loves it. It is a very powerful song, and I probably if it wasn't for the movie really wouldn't have anywhere to go with it. ... It's a very emotional, dramatic piece of music and as good as I've ever done in my life."

On the People's Choice Country Awards red carpet, the Oklahoma native told NBC's "Backstage Live" that he chose to sing that song on the show "mainly because I’ve been going through my cancer fight for the last couple of years, and it’s really inspiring for a lot of people. And coming back on TV for the first time and performing live in front of a live audience, I thought it was fitting.”

When it was initially released in 2018, “Don't Let the Old Man In” peaked at No. 41 on the Billboard Country Airplay chart, according to American Songwriter. Keith released the emotional ode on his 2019 album "Greatest Hits: The Show Dog Years."

'100% Songwriter' Toby Keith is focused on returning to touring

Keith will release a new compilation album, "100% Songwriter," Nov. 3 on Mercury Nashville/UMe on vinyl and via digital service providers. The collection will feature 13 songs Keith wrote solo, including his hits "Courtesy Of The Red, White and Blue (The Angry American)," "Who's Your Daddy?" and "Should've Been a Cowboy," which recently was certified triple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America.

Although he has not yet announced any concert dates, the Oklahoma music superstar is set on returning to touring after taking an 18-month break to focus on his health, according to a news release.

"With all the songs we got, I could play four hours straight hits. ... All I got to 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," Keith told The Oklahoman in June.

"That's living."

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Toby Keith gives surprise performance at Jason Aldean's OKC concert