Toby Keith's Business Legacy

The late singer-songwriter has been remembered for his iconic music and polarizing politics. He also revolutionized the business of country music, as I learned firsthand.

The first time I met country superstar Toby Keith, back in 2013 at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, he dared me to eat a worm.

This wasn’t a random case of peer pressure—Keith had a vested interest. The worm in question sat in a red Solo cup beneath a couple ounces of Wild Shot mezcal, a brand he had just launched, and I was writing a Forbes cover s…