Riley Green Prepares For ‘Fun’ and ‘Lighthearted’ ‘Who’s Your Daddy’ Performance For Toby Keith Tribute [Exclusive]

Riley Green was thrilled and honored to have the chance to step on stage and honor the late Toby Keith for NBC’s two-hour special, Toby Keith: American Icon. 

The Alabama native spoke with Country Now ahead of the star-studded event and expressed his excitement about participating in the show. 

“I would like to just be here even if I wasn’t performing. This is going to be an awesome night,” he shared with us. “A lot of our favorite songs from growing up and you definitely, it is a testament to his career to know this many people are excited about coming and paying tribute to him, and I certainly am.” 

@countrynow.com @Riley Green is a true @Toby Keith ♬ original sound – CountryNow.com

Green was certainly a fan of Toby Keith, but unfortunately, he never had the opportunity to meet him. He said he has a feeling they would have hit it off, though. 

“I was pretty new to town and went on the road pretty heavy. And one thing about him was his career, he was also beating the streets and really put the time in to have a very long career. So I never had any run-ins with him, but certainly have heard a lot of secondhand stories about him and I think that we probably would’ve got along pretty well,” the “Rather Be” singer pointed out. 

As a longtime admirer of his music and songwriting, Green admitted it was difficult to pick a favorite Toby Keith song. 

“He was really great about writing timely songs too, when things happened in the world that he could write about. So definitely covered all the bases of the songwriter,” he said. 

So, when it was time to decide which song to perform for the tribute event, he landed on “Who’s Your Daddy.” 

“It was suggested to me, but I didn’t argue about it,” Green revealed. “I think it would be a lot of fun. I tend to write a lot of sad country songs, so it’d be nice to do something a little more lighthearted.” 

During his performance on Toby Keith: American Icon, Green will be joined by his tourmate and duet partner, Ella Langley.

Filmed in front of a live, sold-out audience at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena on July 29, Toby Keith: American Icon will also feature performances by Trace Adkins, Priscilla Block, Luke Bryan, Eric Church, Jordan Davis, Scotty Emerick, Brantley Gilbert, HARDY, Tyler Hubbard, Jamey Johnson, Krystal Keith, Ella Langley, Mac McAnally, Ashley McBryde, Parker McCollum, Leanne Morgan, Jelly Roll, Darius Rucker, Carrie Underwood, Clay Walker, and Lainey Wilson.

Keith’s compassion and philanthropy will be highlighted throughout the special as the event supported Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt and The Toby Keith Foundation’s OK Kids Korral. Families from both organizations will share their stories of receiving vital care and support during their most challenging times.

The two-hour special, showcasing musical tributes, personal stories, and highlights from Toby Keith’s remarkable career, will air on Wednesday, August 28 at 9 pm ET/PT on NBC, with streaming available the following day on Peacock.

With 32 No.1 singles and 40 million albums sold, Toby Keith is regarded as one of country music’s biggest hitmakers. He wrote a chart-topping hit every year for 20 consecutive years, including “How Do You Like Me Now?!,” “Courtesy of the Red, White, & Blue (The Angry American),” “I Love This Bar,” “Beer For My Horses,” and “As Good As I Once Was.”

He has received the National Medal of Arts, been inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame (following his induction into the all-genre Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2015), and has been honored with the Academy of Country Music’s esteemed Merle Haggard Spirit Award.

Throughout his career, the Oklahoma native received the BMI Icon Award as well as the BMI Country Songwriter of the Year award three times, and his hit single “As Good As I Once Was” was awarded BMI’s Country Song of the Year in 2006.

Toby Keith’s music has garnered more than 10 billion streams and 100 million terrestrial radio spins to date.