The five-year-old track has a new meaning following cancer diagnosis

BMLG Records announces a partnership with singer, songwriter, entertainer and entrepreneur Toby Keith for his latest single “Don’t Let The Old Man In,” which will impact country radio October 30th. After an 18-month break from touring to focus on his health, Keith performed the poignant ballad last month at the People’s Choice Country Awards while accepting the Country Icon honor.

Receiving rave reviews from fans and critics alike, the song has jumped to No. 1 on Billboard’s Country Digital Song Sales chart and Top 3 on the all-genre chart this week and claimed the No. 1 spot on the iTunes Country Songs and Videos charts and Top 3 in the all-genre charts the week prior.

“Scott Borchetta, Allison Jones, George Briner and I all had the honor of working with Toby at DreamWorks Records,” shares Jimmy Harnen, President/CEO, BMLG Records. “After seeing Toby’s incredible performance of ‘Don’t Let The Old Man In’ on the People’s Choice Country Awards, we were so moved, we wanted to be a part of this song any way we possible—we’re looking forward to taking it to country radio, DSPs and beyond.”

“We are honored to, again, represent Toby Keith and this amazing song and moment. Jimmy, George and I worked 12 of his No.1 hits,” adds Scott Borchetta, Chairman and CEO of Big Machine Label Group.

Penned in 2018 by Keith, following a conversation with Clint Eastwood about Father Time’s relentless quest to catch up to us all, the song has taken on a deeper meaning with Keith telling NBC’s Backstage Live that he chose that specific song to sing “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.”

On November 3rd, he will release the album 100% Songwriter, a selection of 13 of many of his most iconic solo-written songs collected in one package. Arguably one of the most successful self-directed recording artists of any era, Keith has had many hits with a wide array of co-writers and a handful from outside writers. Perhaps most impressive is how many of his most iconic songs he wrote by himself, which puts him in league with performing songwriters including Hank Williams, Johnny Cash, Loretta Lynn, Willie Nelson and Dolly Parton.