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Country star Toby Keith is one of the stars who has agreed to perform at Donald Trump’s Presidential Inauguration. Get to know Keith’s life outside the spotlight, particularly with wife Tricia Lucus. Read on below.
1. The Couple Met at a Club
According to The Boot, Keith and his wife Lucus met at a bar when she was just 19 and he was 20 years old. At the time, Lucus worked as an oil-company secretary, and she told People:
I was 19 and he was 20. He was just one of those larger-than-life guys, full of confidence.
After three years of dating, the couple married in 1984.
2. Keith’s Father Died On Their Wedding Anniversary
People previously reported that Toby Keith’s father H.K. Covel, a retired oil-company executive, died on his son’s wedding anniversary, passing away at 64 of a heart attack while driving. The Boot reports, however, it was the car crash, colliding with a bus, that killed him. Keith talked about his father’s death, saying:
He went quick and the funeral was one fit for a king. And I haven’t shed another tear. I look at it like this: He raised a strong man, and I’ve got to take over [the family] now.
In 2007, Keith’s family won $2.8 million in a wrongful death lawsuit in regards to their father, over a faulty issue with the brakes on the bus their dad collided with. The Boot reports that a jury found Keith’s father was not at fault in the accident.
3. After the Couple Married, Keith Adopted Lucus’ Daughter
Lucus had a daughter prior to getting together with Keith, as reported by The Boot. Lucus had a daughter named Shelley, who was born in 1980 and after Lucus married Keith, he adopted her. Together, the married couple then had a daughter named Krystal, a singer-songwriter, and a son, Stelen.
4. In the Beginning, Keith’s Pursuit of Music Weighed Heavily on the Family
Prior to hitting it big, Keith worked in the oil fields, but ended up pursuing music full time. Unfortunately, it caused a bit of financial strain on his family as a result. The Boot reports that Keith would tell his wife this:
He’d say, ‘Trish, one of these days, my time is coming. Hang in there.
Keith previously told Country Weekly that:
Dozens of people told Tricia, ‘You need to go tell your old man to get a real job.’ It took a strong-hearted and loving woman to say, ‘He’s good enough at music that I’ve got to let him try. And it’ll be a great shot for both of us if he can make it work.
5. Lucus Would Rather Have Clothes Than Flowers From Her Man
Wife Lucus has admitted to People that:
Most people think he is just the most romantic person on the planet. He has his moments of charm. It is nice to get a bouquet of flowers, but I’ve told him, ‘Save the money. Roses die in five to seven days. Buy me an outfit, or take me to dinner.’