Toby Keith‘s brand was and still is very centered around the pull yourself up by the bootstraps mentality. That wasn’t just a marketing facade for Keith, as the man truly lived his life in this type of way. During his life and career, the country singer scored a personality rooted in admirable humility yet stiff confidence. He was no pushover, and that is seemingly why he decided to split from the record label giant, Universal Music Group, and its subsidiary, DreamWorks Records Nashville, in 2005.
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Prior to exiting the label in 2005, Keith had released monster hits, “Should’ve Been A Cowboy”, “How Do You Like Me Now?!”, and “Courtesy Of The Red, White, and Blue (The Angry American)”. Needless to say, he was one of the biggest artists in the game at the time. Consequently, he was a cash cow for his label, and that is one of the many reasons he decided to depart and go his own way.
Particularly, Keith reportedly believed that Universal and DreamWorks were exploiting his notoriety and talents to stay afloat. As the expectation was for him to release an album every year. Furthermore, Keith also allegedly disagreed with how they were managing and marketing his music. That being said, Keith decided to break off from the label and dictate his own career path. And he did exactly that by starting the major record label, Show Dog Records.
Not Just a Win for Toby Keith, but a Win for Country Music
Concerning his reasoning, Keith told the Associated Press that his decision generally boiled down to artistic and logistical freedom. Keith stated, “We can literally make a decision at noon and get started by one p.m.,” and “I get to do things exactly my way”, per the AP, via The Herald Times.
Toby Keith started Show Dog Records alongside Big Machine Records founder Scott Borchetta. The label’s first client was Keith, but once they hit the ground running, they procured notable clients such as Trace Adkins, Clay Walker, Carter’s Chord, Waterloo Revival, and several others. Also, given his partnership role in Big Machine, he had a hand in developing the one and only Taylor Swift.
The founding of Show Dog Records didn’t just help Keith’s career, but also the careers of all the artists involved. Four years after its inception, Keith sold Show Dog Records to Universal South Records in 2009. Although neither party revealed the dollar amount of the sale. Regardless, the creation of Show Dog and its sale to Universal is a pretty full-circle story. And also, a testament to Toby Keith not just as a musician, but also as a businessman, and supporter of artistic and financial autonomy.
Photo by Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images for iHeartMedia
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