Garth Brooks: New Music, Tour

Garth Brooks was in Nashville today to announce he will release new music with a new worldwide partner: Sony Music and RCA Nashville.  For the first time, Garth Brooks music will be available digitally, exclusively at GarthBrooks.com.  Also, a world tour will be announced on July 14. Garth announced, “Today I feel very lucky to be joining Sony Music, and very lucky to be working with the guys at RCA Nashville, who’ll be handling radio and retail for us.  Scared?  Yes.  Old? Yes.  I’m thankful to be looking at a second half of a career.  I don’t know too many artists who get this chance.”

Obviously, one of the big issues still unresolved is his concerts later this month in Ireland.  He said, “Up to ten days ago, it was nothing but love.  Then came the thing where they said we’re OK with three of them, you have to figure out the other two.  I wish I knew where that came from.  I don’t know.  I never saw it coming.  I don’t have a clue how we got here.  All I know is the power to fix it isn’t here.  Don’t sell a show to people and just cancel on them.  It’s not OK for me.  That’s not how you treat people.”

For many years, Garth had held back his music from digital distribution.  He’s been very vocal that he didn’t want to use established platforms, such as iTunes.  So today, he announced, “We will be doing our digital the best we can, the only way we know how, because we’re the only ones that play our own way, so digital will be handled at GarthBrooks.com.  That will be the only place you can get Garth Brooks music.”  He later said, “There’s going to be a window coming in this digital era where people who’ve wanted to get Garth Brooks music will get it all at a stupid price.  That’s what it’s all about.  The people who’ve waited should be rewarded.”

So when is the music coming?  Garth said he had to be vague: “Sometime in the next two months.  The album is going to be released somewhere around Black Friday.  The new record is going to be what we traditionally know as a double record, because we have a lot to say.  I’m having a great time playing and writing again, but I’m not sure that my writing is up to where this town is now.  I’m hoping it’s because I’m rusty, not because I suck.  But most of what I’m recording is outside songs and I’m very impressed with the writers in this town right now.”

Then he got specific with some of the songs he’s recording: “This album has a song on it that might well have taken the place of “The Dance” for me as my favorite Garth Brooks song ever.  I didn’t write it.  There are a lot of great messages coming.”  He was asked to describe the new music, and he said, “I’d describe it as Garth music.  I wasn’t the country guy in the 90s.  It’s kind of odd.  But if you had to put it in a box, it’s Garth music.”

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