Country music coming to Canton Civic Center. Brantley Gilbert talks Toby Keith, new music

CANTON − Brantley Gilbert recalls the last conversation he had with late country music star Toby Keith.

"Those are boots that will never be filled," he said of Keith, who died in February at age 62 following a battle with stomach cancer. "... When I met the man himself and had the opportunity to go on tour with him, he truly was bigger than life. And it went beyond an inspiration to me. He kind of became somebody I'd reach out to, not just for music stuff."

Whenever Gilbert texted or called Keith, the message was returned within a day.

"Our last conversation was about parenting," said Gilbert, who will perform on March 21 at the Canton Memorial Civic Center.

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Gilbert was struggling with the realities of being on the road and missing out on watching his kids grow up, their time together limited to FaceTime video calls.

"And he said, 'Yeah, I can relate.' He kind of went in-depth a little bit.

"He just had some advice for me I'd like to keep private," Gilbert said. "It's just something that wouldn't have come from anybody else. ... When it came to that, he was perfect because he was unapologetic and he wasn't afraid to tell you the truth. Even if it wasn't necessarily what you wanted to hear.

"Everybody you run into (in Nashville) had an experience with Toby. He's one of the real ones if not the realist. That dude was unapologetic. Not only with his music, but that's who he was as a person, and I'll love that dude until the day I die."

Keith's legacy was well established, for songwriting, philanthropy and love of country. His death was met with a wave of tributes online across the celebrity spectrum, including Dolly Parton, Zach Bryan, Jill Biden, Carrie Underwood and Sammy Hagar.

Gilbert's story is still being written, meanwhile. He has several albums and hit songs under his belt. He opened for multi-platinum rock band Nickelback on tour last year. Festival performances include his 2022 appearance at The Country Fest in Stark County. Gilbert's song "Bottoms Up" has racked up nearly 300 million views on YouTube. And he's currently headlining his "Off The Rails Tour," featuring opening acts Dylan Marlowe, Demun Jones and Struggle Jennings.

Tickets for the Canton concert start at $29.50 and are available at https://www.ticketmaster.com/. VIP packages are also available. Tickets also can be purchased from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays at the box office at the Civic Center, 1101 Market Ave. N.

Playing smaller venues like the Canton Civic Center

Gilbert said he's excited to perform at the 5,000-seat Civic Center in downtown Canton.

"We'll play every room the same," the 39-year-old singer-songwriter said. "I don't care if there's 10 people there or 10,000. We'll put on the same show. ... This thing is going to be balls to the wall.

"The past two years we've been out with Five Finger Death Punch, and then Nickelback, so we're coming off of two rock tours, and it's a rock set," he added. "We kind of piggybacked off of what we've been doing for the last two years, and kind of added fuel to the fire.

"... You get 4,000 or 5,000 people packed in there shoulder to shoulder, and it's an intimate, more personal experience," Gilbert said. "I like to see the whole crowd."

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Fans can expect new music live

Earlier this month, Gilbert released the new single, "Off The Rails," a high-octane country rocker featuring husky vocals and aggressive guitar playing.

More new music will be unveiled in Canton and on other tour stops.

"We're also doing some things a little backwards," Gilbert said. "... We're going to be playing some unreleased music live before the album comes out. The people that buy the tickets and show up and support us will be able to be the first to hear them."

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He's also excited about his opening acts, including Dylan Marlowe.

"He's got the rising star thing going on, man, and he's really an awesome dude but extremely talented," Gilbert said. "I'm excited to see what he brings to the stage."

New album features Gary LeVox of Rascal Flatts

Gilbert said he's working on a new album.

"There's a little bit of the rap country, rap rock, some hard country, some Southern rock and some straight rock," he said. "It's just a little bit of everything. In 10 songs, we danced in and out of the box. And I'm really excited about this record. I think it's a really cool collection of some of our best work, and another chapter in my story.

"There's one song that's really, really acoustic driven, really country instrumentation, just a solid country song," Gilbert added. "It's called, 'Gone By Now,' and then we've got a song on there, the one we're cutting with Dylan Marlowe ... and man, it is a rocker.

"Gary LeVox from Rascal Flatts has been a good friend of mine for a long time, and there's kind of a gospel-geared song on the album that he's jumping on with me. And there's another feature on the album coming as well − it's a duet that I can't spill the beans on quite yet."

About a month ago, Gilbert posted a YouTube video showing him working in the studio together with LeVox and Kid Rock. Featured artists on the album also will include his tour openers Demun Jones and Struggle Jennings.

"Stylistically, I'd say we're leaning a little more towards, I don't know if authentic is the right word. But we're leaning away from some of the digital leniencies that we've had on the past few records and more towards ... like a band sound," Gilbert said. "That's kind of my heart and soul and those are my roots. So to be able to go back to that and kind of let the songs be what they want to be. When you play that record from front to back, you're going to hear songs (and) you're going to be like, 'I can't believe that's on the same album.'"

'Put a rocket booster under it and pour gas on the fire.'

Fans also can expect a batch of rowdy cover songs played in a medley.

"Every tour ... for at least the last five years has a rock jam in it ... and we may change that three times during the tour, or if one works really well, we'll keep it," Gilbert said. "But we'll take five or six heavy songs that people would not expect from us and just kind of lay it out on the table. We do really older country stuff, and kind of put a rocket booster under it and pour gas on the fire. I love having fun with stuff like that.

"The band that we have right now, and the show we have right now in my opinion, is probably my favorite yet.

"I do feel right now the band that we have and the show that we have is the most energetic, the funnest to watch, the funnest to play show that I've had in my career, and that's thanks to the guys on the stage and the guys behind the scenes."

Son's recent baptism 'unlocked something in me.'

Gilbert said he usually shies away from posting videos and photos of his children on social media. An exception was made for his 6-year-old son's recent baptism.

"My wife got me back into church," he said. "Not that I ever strayed from faith … or my belief, but she got me going back, and I felt it was important to show my son and my daughter that is something you do with family, and it's important, if not the most important aspect of the family unit itself. And I feel like in society these days, we're moving farther and farther away from it."

"... I struggle a little bit to talk about it right now as it tears me up. I'm not a crier, man. I just don't have a lot of experience with tears; it's not necessarily my thing, but as a dad, (my son) unlocked something in me ... when I heard him explain to the pastor what it meant to him (to be baptized), he knew what he was doing, and it was a decision he wanted to make.

"Salvation, especially when it's one of your (young children), it just grabbed me by every heartstring that I had and pulled me somewhere special."

"... It's been an inspiration to people," Gilbert added. "A 6-year-old giving his life to God, it's crazy how that can inspire a grown man and grown woman to kind of look at their situation and maybe want to grow in their faith."

Reach Ed at ebalint@gannett.com. On X (formerly Twitter) @ebalintREP and Instagram at ed_balint.

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Brantley Gilbert talks Toby Keith, new music, Canton Civic Center show