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“We’re Kindred Spirits”: Why Ernest Embarked On His First USO Tour To Follow In The Footsteps Of Toby Keith
It was a lot, both musically and emotionally, to take on one of Toby Keith’s final demos… but Ernest was up for the challenge.
Ernest recently returned to the Whiskey Riff Raff podcast, and the Nashville-based artist and songwriter had a story and anecdote for just about everything. He spoke to us about how rewarding it is to give joy to others through music, why he’s passionate about giving back to the Nashville music community, working with artists like Jelly Roll (and non-artists like Pat McAfee), and the responsibility he felt cutting a Toby Keith demo after the country legend’s death.
In case you haven’t heard it just yet, the song that the Big Dog Daddy penned before his death is called “End of the Night.” If you consider yourself a fan of Keith, the track that’s actually already available to listen to thanks to Apple Music’s Lost and Found has Toby’s fingerprint all over it.
That was what drew Ernest in. The songwriter who seems to be connected to just about everyone in Nashville unfortunately only interacted with Toby Keith one time before the superstar passed away after a battle with cancer. Despite the lack of time spent together, Ernest always felt a connection to the “Should’ve Been A Cowboy” singer:
“I met Toby once. We never got to hang. I always felt and feel like we’re kindred spirits. Sense of humor wise, the things we like, our favorite songwriters… probably the same people. Our favorite artists? Probably the same people.
His background singers were with me when we were rehearsing. In between, me and my band were sitting around sipping on whiskey and listening to Merle Haggard and she was like, ‘This is exactly what Toby would have done.'”
That comment provided Ernest with some comfort and confidence to take on the demo that was left behind by the Big Dog Daddy.
Ernest says he received five or six unfinished songs that were all written by Toby Keith (with some help from others like Bobby Pinson and David Lee Murphy), and “End of the Night” was the one that stuck out to him. And through it all, he couldn’t believe that he was getting a chance to cut a song that was created by a country music legend.
That’s why he approached the task with a whole lot of respect, and made sure to honor Toby Keith in every way that he could:
“It was super, super, super cool honor. There were like five or six songs in the email to choose from. To me, that one just spoke to me immediately. It felt like something… it sounds like something I would do. When I went into the studio, I didn’t want to do anything fancy. I wanted to cut it as if Toby was going to walk in and sing it with me. (I wanted to) do it proud.
I immediately texted TK, his manager, and Bobby Pinson and David Lee Murphy, just to get their nod of approval on it. They liked it. Then I got to meet Toby’s wife at the BMI Awards, talked to her, said, ‘Thank you so much, I loved your husband. I’m getting ready to go do a USO Tour because I want to do the stuff that he was doing.'”
Kindred spirits indeed.
Ernest’s USO Tour consisted of visiting seven countries in eight days around Christmas time last year, and playing for the troops at every stop… while mixing in plenty of Toby Keith songs while he was at it. If the Nashville-based artist and songwriter didn’t feel connected with the Big Dog Daddy before, following in Toby’s footsteps and doing a USO Tour certainly hammered the connection home.
And Ernest let us know that “End of the Night” became so special to him that he decided to include it in his upcoming album:
“I’m putting ‘End of the Night’ on my album, Deep Blue, which is coming out this spring. I cut it and I’m gonna put it on my actual record. It fits on the album perfectly.”
@whiskeyriff @Ernest @Toby Keith #whiskeyriff #whiskeyriffraff ♬ original sound – Whiskey Riff
Ernest has previously talked about how modern country singers have a duty to keep the spirit of those artists who have come before them alive, and Ernest did just that by finishing what Toby Keith started with “End of the Night.” There’s no doubt that the Big Dog Daddy would approve.
To hear more from Ernest, make sure to download the podcast on Apple Podcasts by searching “Whiskey Riff Raff” or click here.
We’re also available on Spotify and wherever else you can listen to podcasts.
Cheers, y’all.
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The post “We’re Kindred Spirits”: Why Ernest Embarked On His First USO Tour To Follow In The Footsteps Of Toby Keith first appeared on Whiskey Riff.
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