{"id":2303034,"date":"2026-02-27T12:55:20","date_gmt":"2026-02-27T12:55:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/?p=2303034"},"modified":"2026-02-27T12:55:20","modified_gmt":"2026-02-27T12:55:20","slug":"oklahoma-names-new-turnpike-after-country-music-legend-toby-keith","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/oklahoma-names-new-turnpike-after-country-music-legend-toby-keith\/","title":{"rendered":"Oklahoma names new turnpike after country music legend Toby Keith"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div id=\"\">\n<div class=\"column eleven-column byline-section\">\n<p><span class=\"author\"\/><span class=\"publication\"><span slot=\"bylineInfo\" class=\"authors\">Barbara Hoberock<\/span><br \/>\n<span slot=\"bylineInfo\" class=\"credit\">\u00a0|\u00a0 Oklahoma Voice<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div id=\"videoWrap\" class=\"spacer-large videoWrap\" style=\"position:relative\"><media-video video-id=\"85291842007\" title=\"Baker Mayfield explains relationship with John Mateer, Toby Keith\" poster=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/authoring\/authoring-images\/2025\/06\/29\/SSNR\/84408896007-usatsi-26415406.jpg?crop=5922,3332,x0,y394\" util-module-path=\"elements\/media\" placement=\"snow-video-story-priority\"><\/p>\n<div id=\"uwVideoPlaceholder\" slot=\"placeholder\" style=\"z-index:19;width:100%;padding-bottom:56.25%;position:relative\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"vidplaybtn\" style=\"display:-moz-box;display:-ms-flexbox;display:-webkit-flex;display:flex;background-color:rgba(0,0,0,.4);border:2px solid #fff;border-radius:80px;cursor:pointer;height:80px;width:80px;position:absolute;top:50%;left:50%;transform:translate(-50%,-50%);z-index:10\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"vidplayicon\" src=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/appservices\/universal-web\/universal\/icons\/icon-play-alt-white.svg\" alt=\"play\" style=\"height:40px;margin:auto 18px auto 27px;width:40px\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div slot=\"videoDetails\" id=\"videoDetails\" class=\"videoDetails\" style=\"padding-top:8px;padding-bottom:8px\">\n<div id=\"videoDetailsContainer\" class=\"videoDetailsContainer\" hidden=\"\">\n<p>Baker Mayfield explains relationship with John Mateer, Toby Keith<\/p>\n<p>Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield was back in Norman on July 19 for his youth football camp.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/media-video><\/div>\n<p>Oklahoma lawmakers are giving <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.oklahoman.com\/story\/entertainment\/2025\/08\/27\/toby-keith-american-icon-nbc-ok-kids-korral\/83937818007\/\">late country music star Toby Keith<\/a> a final red Solo cup toast in honor of his lifelong contributions to Oklahoma and beyond.<\/p>\n<partner-banner util-module-path=\"elements\/partner\" class=\"spacer-large\" min-height=\"600\" fluid=\"\" outstream=\"\" momentum=\"\"\/>\n<p>The Senate on Thursday passed\u00a0<a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/www.oklegislature.gov\/BillInfo.aspx?Bill=HCR1019&amp;Session=2600\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">House Concurrent Resolution 1019<\/a>\u00a0to name the <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.oklahoman.com\/story\/news\/local\/2025\/12\/10\/ota-oklahoma-turnpike-authority-construction-longest-bridge\/87690536007\/\">new east-west connector turnpike<\/a> in the Norman area to salute the singer, who sang \u201cRed Solo Cup.\u201d Keith, 62, died in 2024 after a battle with cancer.<\/p>\n<p>The roadway named after the Moore High School graduate will <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.oklahoman.com\/story\/news\/2025\/09\/24\/new-oklahoma-turnpike-map-ota-controversial-route-norman-see-map\/86331466007\/\">extend from Interstate 44 east to I-35 near Indian Hills Road<\/a>, continuing east and north to I- 40 at the Kickapoo Turnpike. It will be called the Toby Keith Expressway.<\/p>\n<p>Keith\u2019s hits include \u201cShould\u2019ve Been a Cowboy,\u201d \u201cCourtesy of the Red, White and Blue,\u201d and \u201cAmerican Soldier.\u201d<\/p>\n<partner-banner util-module-path=\"elements\/partner\" fluid=\"\" bottom=\"\" lazy=\"\" class=\"spacer-large\" min-height=\"390\" outstream=\"\"\/>\n<p>He sold more than 40 million albums, produced over 20 number one singles and was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame, the resolution said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBeyond his musical accomplishments, Toby Keith was a proud and vocal patriot who dedicated significant time and resources to supporting members of the United States Armed Forces with no financial benefit to himself, performing more than 300 shows on multiple USO tours in combat zones and uplifting American service members stationed overseas,\u201d according to the measure.<\/p>\n<p><cta-atoms-container-inline util-module-path=\"elements\/cta\" class=\"spacer-large\"\/><\/p>\n<p class=\"related-link\"><span class=\"exclude-from-newsgate\"><strong style=\"margin-right:3px\">More: <\/strong><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.oklahoman.com\/story\/news\/state\/2026\/01\/15\/oklahoma-turnpike-okc-road-construction-projects-2026-look-ahead\/88146576007\/\" rel=\"noreferrer\" target=\"_blank\">Major Oklahoma turnpike, OKC road construction is underway. Here&#8217;s 4 projects to watch.<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p><media-gallery-promo asset-id=\"88528293007\" class=\"column ten-column no-gutter spacer-large\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Sen. Lisa Standridge, R-Norman, said Keith, a longtime Norman resident, was the state\u2019s greatest country and western star who was unapologetic about what he believed in.<\/p>\n<partner-inline util-module-path=\"elements\/partner\" class=\"spacer-large\" placement=\"native-article_link\" sizes=\"[[300, 250], [3, 3]]\" min-height=\"250\" fluid=\"\" outstream=\"\"\/>\n<p>He spent time as a roughneck in the oil fields, played defensive end for the Oklahoma City Drillers and was a successful businessman and philanthropist, she said.<\/p>\n<partner-banner util-module-path=\"elements\/partner\" fluid=\"\" bottom=\"\" lazy=\"\" class=\"spacer-large\" min-height=\"600\" outstream=\"\" momentum=\"\"\/>\n<p>\u201cHe was a near constant figure on the sidelines of University of Oklahoma football games,\u201d Standridge said.<\/p>\n<p>His open patriotism was one of the things that set him apart, she said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cToby Keith sang about loving his country and he lived it day in and day out,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<partner-inline util-module-path=\"elements\/partner\" placement=\"native-article_link\" sizes=\"[[300, 250], [3, 3]]\" min-height=\"250\" fluid=\"\" outstream=\"\"\/>\n<p>The measure, which previously passed the state House, does not require the governor\u2019s signature.<\/p>\n<p>The 28-mile east-west connector is estimated to cost $3 billion, said Lisa Shearer-Salim, an Oklahoma Turnpike Authority spokesperson.<\/p>\n<p>Construction on it is about to begin, and the estimated completion date is 2033, she said.<\/p>\n<p>It is part of a $8.2 billion, 15-year turnpike system improvement project, dubbed Advancing and Connecting Communities and Economies Safely Statewide.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/oklahomavoice.com\"><em>Oklahoma Voice<\/em><\/a><em> is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Oklahoma Voice maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Janelle Stecklein for questions: <\/em><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"mailto:info@oklahomavoice.com\"><em>info@oklahomavoice.com<\/em><\/a><em>. Follow Oklahoma Voice on <\/em><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/facebook.com\/OklahomaVoice\"><em>Facebook<\/em><\/a><em> and <\/em><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Oklahoma_Voice\"><em>Twitter<\/em><\/a><em>.<\/em><\/p>\n<partner-banner util-module-path=\"elements\/partner\" fluid=\"\" bottom=\"\" lazy=\"\" class=\"spacer-large\" min-height=\"390\" outstream=\"\"\/><media-image image-set=\"https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/authoring\/authoring-images\/2024\/02\/06\/NOKL\/72496805007-toby-keith-007.JPEG bestCrop, https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/authoring\/authoring-images\/2024\/02\/06\/NOKL\/72496805007-toby-keith-007.JPEG?crop=4502,3375,x96,y0 4:3, https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/authoring\/authoring-images\/2024\/02\/06\/NOKL\/72496805007-toby-keith-007.JPEG?crop=2532,3375,x469,y0 3:4, https:\/\/www.gannett-cdn.com\/authoring\/authoring-images\/2024\/02\/06\/NOKL\/72496805007-toby-keith-007.JPEG?crop=4694,2641,x0,y367 16:9\" image-alt=\"\" credit=\"THE OKLAHOMAN FILE\" caption=\"The Oklahoma Senate passed a measure that would name a new turnpike after late country music legend Toby Keith, who died in 2024. Keith is pictured here during a 2017 fundraiser in Norman.\" orientation=\"horizontal\" class=\"spacer-large\" util-module-path=\"elements\/media\"\/><lit-timestamp class=\"column ten-column no-gutter spacer-small\" slot=\"timestamp\" publishdate=\"2026-02-26 22:16:55.94928504 +0000 UTC\" updatedate=\"2026-02-26 22:16:55.94928504 +0000 UTC\"\/><\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><em> \u2018 The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n<p><em> \u2018 Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.oklahoman.com \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Barbara Hoberock \u00a0|\u00a0 Oklahoma Voice Baker Mayfield explains relationship with John Mateer, Toby Keith Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Baker Mayfield was back in Norman on July 19 for his youth football camp. Oklahoma lawmakers are giving late country music star Toby Keith a final red Solo cup toast in honor of his lifelong contributions to [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2161198,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[25179],"tags":[39915,28769,22220,21751,239390,23849,22846,307579,6297,21741,240269,305252,22296,42645,38937,317484,21739,298114,22764,305244,311710,21800,211924,21738,28774,306904,239343,239453,305243,305245,344138,344140,239344],"class_list":["post-2303034","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-music","tag-affiliate","tag-and","tag-arts","tag-celebrities","tag-celebrities-u0026-entertainment-news","tag-country","tag-country-music","tag-country-music-hall-of-fame-and-museum","tag-eamotion","tag-entertainment","tag-exclude","tag-exclude-from-paywall-logic-testing","tag-fame","tag-from","tag-hall","tag-keith","tag-local","tag-local-affiliate-arts-u0026-entertainment","tag-local-news","tag-logic","tag-museum","tag-music","tag-neutral","tag-news","tag-of","tag-oklahoma","tag-overall","tag-overall-neutral","tag-paywall","tag-testing","tag-toby","tag-toby-keith","tag-u0026"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/Toby-Keiths-daughter-Krystal-Keith-singing-in-his-honor-at-scaled.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2303034","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2303034"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2303034\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2303035,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2303034\/revisions\/2303035"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2161198"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2303034"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2303034"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2303034"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}