Toby Keith’s reign at the top of the charts continues. The Oklahoma native is spending his second week at the No. 1 spot on Billboard‘s Country Digital Song Sales chart, with “Don’t Let the Old Man In,” which is also in the Top 3 on their all-genre chart.

The chart achievements come after Keith performed the personal and pensive song at the People’s Choice Country Awards, where he was given the People’s Country Icon Award, presented to him by Blake Shelton.

The performance was especially emotional and poignant, as Keith continues his recovery from stomach cancer, which he announced in 2022.

“I walked some dark hallways,” Keith told Extra. “Almighty’s riding shotgun. But I feel pretty good. You have good days and bad days, but it’s a little bit of a roller coaster. But I’m doing a lot better than I was this time last year.”

“Don’t Let the Old Man In” is from Clint Eastwood’s 2018 film, The Mule. The song was inspired by a conversation Keith had with Eastwood, when the country music star asked the movie icon, who turned 88 on the same day filming for The Mule began, how he stayed so active.

“He said, ‘I just get up every morning and go out. And I don’t let the old man in,’ ” Keith later recalled to Billboard. “And I thought, I’m writing that.”

From the moment Keith heard Eastwood say those words, he became laser-focused on writing “Don’t Let the Old Man In.”

“People were talking to me and they would say, ‘Did you hear what I just said?’ And I was like, ‘No,’ because I wasn’t listening to any conversations. I was consumed by ‘Don’t Let the Old Man In.’ I worked so hard on it,” Keith recalled. “When I finally sang the line, I thought, it’s got to be dark, it’s got to be a ballad and it’s got to be simple.”

Keith had no idea when he wrote “The Mule,’ inspired by Eastwood, that the song would be used in the movie.

“He said, ‘I’ve got a spot in the movie and I’m putting it in there,'” Keith remembered Eastwood saying. “And then Warner Bros. called asking did I read the script before I wrote this song because it fits perfectly.”

Keith’s 13-track 100% Songwriter album will be out 0n November 3, featuring some of his biggest hits throughout his three-decade career, all songs written entirely by Keith. Find all of Keith’s music and touring updates at TobyKeith.com