UPDATED January 17:

STEPHEN BARKER LILES of LOVE AND THEFT was aboard the “Country Cruising” tour in the Caribbean and gave an eyewitness account of what went down between TRACE ADKINS and the impersonator he mixed it up with.

He said Trace confronted the guy and, quote, “got up in his face”.  However, nothing physical went down.  

Stephen also explained WHY Trace was so irritated.  He said, quote, “There’s only so much you can take of someone pretending to be you.  It’s cool for a little while, but then you get in a confined space.

“And when a dude is mocking your autograph, trying to look just like you, it’s like, ‘Okay, bro.  I’ve been doing this for 20 years.  You’ve been following me around for 20 years.  And now you’re on this small cruise ship?’  He’d had enough, I guess.”

Last we heard, Trace is still in rehab, however we don’t know where or for how long.

 

TRACE ADKINS fell off the wagon in the worst way yesterday . . . by getting drunk and mixing it up with a real live Trace Adkins impersonator.  It happened during the “Country Cruising” cruise in the Caribbean.

Trace and his impersonator “got physical” during a karaoke session.  No photos have surfaced, yet . . .

Anyway, Trace left the ship when it reached Jamaica and he checked into rehab.  (By all accounts, Trace had been stone sober since spending 28 days in an alcohol rehabilitation program in 2002.) 

His rep told CountryWeekly.com, quote, “Trace has entered a treatment facility after a setback in his battle with alcoholism.  As he faces these issues head-on, we ask that his family’s privacy will be respected.”

Trace’s performances on the ship have been canceled.  The cruise features over 20 country acts, includingMontgomery Gentry, Wynonna, and Craig Morgan.

Trace actually MET the impersonator back in 2007 and they got along fine.  (You can check out a photo and video of that encounter here.)