FIGHTIN' WORDS
The feud between Toby Keith and the Dixie Chicks'
Natalie Maines is now more brutal than ever -- but has
it already gone too far?
"F.U.T.K."
Four little letters, emblazoned across Dixie Chicks
lead singer Natalie Maines' T-shirt during their ACM
Awards performance.
Now, what could those letters possibly mean?
Some charitably guessed "Friends United in Truth and
Kindness." A Chicks spokesperson claimed it stood for
"Freedom, Understanding, Truth and Knowledge." The
night after the show, Toby Keith claimed not to know
what it meant. Funny thing, because for most observers,
those letters could only mean one thing -- an offensive
insult from Natalie directed straight at Toby.
The T-shirt message was taken as the latest salvo in a
war of words -- and pictures, and, now, abbreviations
-- that's been going on for nearly a year. Politically
and philosophically divided, Natalie and Toby have been
butting heads since last September, when she shared her
unfavorable opinion on his flag-waving, chest-beating
smash "Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue (The Angry
American)."
The notorious shirt seems to have been her revenge on
Toby for having shown audiences on his spring tour a
huge digitally doctored photo depicting Natalie with
Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein. The spunky Chick did not
appreciate the suggestion that she sympathized with a
murderous villain, and apparently decided to send Toby
a message.
Toby's fans immediately responded in kind by creating
"F.U.D.C." T-shirts -- they've become a staple of his
concerts, and many were seen at this year's Fan Fair.
Toby himself was dismissive about the T-shirt incident,
which some speculated was the reason he left the ACM
show too early to accept his Entertainer of the Year
trophy. "If y'all think she's done, you're crazy," he
said. "Stuff comes out of her blowhole daily."
Even as Toby struck back at Natalie, he 'fessed up to
liking the Chicks' tunes. "I think it's too bad for the
other two that it has to be what it is," he said,
"because they do make great music."
Ironically, the feud began because Natalie didn't care
for Toby's music -- specifically, "Courtesy of the Red,
White and Blue," with its famous terrorist-baiting line
We'll put a boot in your ass, it's the American way. "I
hate it," she declared last August. "It's ignorant, and
it makes country music sound ignorant."
Toby responded by insulting Natalie's own tunesmithing
ability. "You've got to be in my league as a songwriter
before I'll even respond to you," he said.
The dispute simmered on a low boil for a while ? until
March 10. It was on that day that Natalie -- who had
sung with the Chicks at George W. Bush's gubernatorial
inauguration -- made her now-infamous remark from a
London stage: "Just so you know, we're ashamed the
president of the United States is from Texas." That
single sentence ignited a furor, with radio stations
banning the Chicks' music, fans destroying their CDs
and everyone in sight weighing in on the matter --
including President Bush himself.
Read more about Toby and Natalie in the current 8/05/03
"Newsstand Issue" on sale now!