Toby Keith and Natalie Maines, Dixie Chicks: Looking back at the early 2000s feud

After news of his death at 62, fans are remembering a feud between country music legend Toby Keith and country band The Chicks (formerly The Dixie Chicks).

So what happened between the two country icons?

Here's what we know about the feud.

'American icon': Fans remember Toby Keith's legacy, impact

What started the feud between Toby Keith and The Dixie Chicks, Natalie Maines

Keith's 2002 song "Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue (The Angry American)" sparked controversy. Written shortly after the 9/11 terrorist attacks and his veteran father's death, he made his beliefs about how the military should respond crystal clear.

"And you'll be sorry that you messed with / The U.S. of A. / 'Cause we'll put a boot in your a** / It's the American way," Keith sang.

Keith's song prompted an array of reactions. One came from The Chicks from Dallas, Texas. Lead singer Natalie Maines criticized Keith's song and his support of the Iraq War and President George W. Bush.

"Don't get me started," Maines told the Los Angeles Daily News. "I hate it. It's ignorant, and it makes country music sound ignorant. It targets an entire culture — and not just the bad people who did bad things. You've got to have some tact. Anybody can write, 'We'll put a boot in your ass.' But a lot of people agree with it. The kinds of songs I prefer on the subject are like Bruce Springsteen's new songs."

More: Oklahoma country music icon Toby Keith dies after battling stomach cancer

Toby Keith, Dixie Chicks feud ramps up in 2003

During concerts, Keith began putting a fake photo of Maines next to a picture of terrorist Saddam Hussein, implying similarities between the two, American Songwriter reports.

According to Wide Open Country, Maines wore a shirt with "F.U.T.K." onstage at the 2003 Academy of Country Music Awards. The Chicks claimed the acronym stood for "Friends United Together in Kindness" or "Freedom, Understanding, Truth and Knowledge." Later in their documentary "Shut Up & Sing," Maines confirmed the letters actually meant "F*** U Toby Keith."

On a cover of Entertainment Weekly, the three Chicks posed nude with paint spelling out "big mouth," "traitors" and more.

Toby Keith, Dixie Chicks feud ends as Keith faced tragedy

Keith unexpectedly ended the feud after rumors that one of his band members lost their toddler to cancer.

“A few days after I found she didn’t have long to live,” he told Contact Music in 2003, “I saw a picture on the cover of Country Weekly with a picture of me and Natalie and it said, ‘Fight to the Death’ or something. It seemed so insignificant. I said, ‘Enough is enough.'”

In a 2003 interview with CMT.com, Keith said he was "embarrassed about the way I let myself get sucked into all that," the New York Times reported.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: What to know about Toby Keith's early 2000s feud with The Dixie Chicks