Garth Brooks is all smiles as he announces his new one-man show at the Wynn in Las Vegas, Nev. during a press conference on October 15, 2009. Photo courtesy of garthbrooks.com.

#3 on GAC’s Top Stories of 2009 |  View all »

As early as 1992, just three years into his skyrocketing career, Garth Brooks began publicly mulling retirement from the music business. The subject continued to come up frequently, though few believed anyone that successful could walk away from it all.

Garth did, in fact, go into hibernation following the release of an album in 2001, but many observers figured he would find a way to return to the spotlight. Periodically, he would emerge to promote a new compilation project or to do a charity gig, but he finally went back to performing regularly in December when he kicked off a scaled-down concert format in a surprisingly loose deal with Wynn Las Vegas. Garth essentially delivers a one-man show for 15 weekends annually over a five-year period, at which time he’s likely to begin touring once again. If either Garth or casino owner Steve Wynn is disenchanted with the arrangement, either is able to back out.

Continue Reading

ShareThis

Taylor Swift photo courtesy of Big Machine Records.

It’s an interesting juxtaposition of country music’s best-selling artists from two different eras. When Taylor Swift was born, Garth Brooks had hit No. 1 for the first time just days earlier with “If Tomorrow Never Comes.” When her first album came out in the fall of 2006, Garth was just days away from a bevy of certifications that would push his career album sales over 120 million.

Both artists sold a ton of concert tickets at the end of last week. With her single “Fifteen” in the Top 15, Taylor put 15 arena shows up for sale on Friday, and all of them sold out in minutes. Garth, who was already retired when she Swiftly became the genre’s new top seller, put his comeback tickets in Las Vegas on the market Saturday, and after overloading the Wynn Las Vegas website, his first 20 performances sold out as well.

Continue Reading

ShareThis