Garth Brooks Announcement Coming 7/7: “The Wait Is Over”
***UPDATE (7-7-14): Apparently, the 7’s have not aligned. Garth Brooks has announced that there will not be an announcement today. It will be postponed until Thursday, 7/10 when it will be made on his website in a live press conference and interview at noon Eastern, 11 AM Central. The postponement might be because of the uncertainty around Garth’s five Ireland shows that are up in the air after only three of them were approved by local officials. Garth has said it is all five, or none. The standoff is currently in “crisis negotiations.”
***END UPDATE
Well, we still don’t know the “what” exactly, but now we now know the “when.”
Just in the last 24 hours, the announcement “The Wait Is Over … 7/7” has appeared on Garth Brooks’ official website, hinting that the long-anticipated official end to his retirement, and potential announcements about a tour, and maybe even new music are eminent.
Garth retired in 2000 to spend more time with his children, but through the last fourteen years, he’s hinted that once his youngest daughter is done with high school (which she now is), his return was likely. Despite an extended residency at the Wynn Casino in Las Vegas, and releasing a box set last year right before Christmas that shot up the charts from big sales, Garth has mostly been sitting under the radar in recent memory. But in late October of 2013, the signs of Garth’s full-time return began to surface. “The sevens have aligned. It has begun”¦ Thank you for believing”¦ love, g.” was the first cryptic communique fans received. Garth’s fondness of “sevens” was first evidenced in 1997 when he named his seventh album Sevens.
In late November of 2013, Garth ratcheted up the rhetoric on his return when he told reporters, ““Me and Miss Yearwood are free to do whatever it is we want to do. And I’ve got to tell you: Anything I do with that woman, I’m fine with. Any place that I am with that woman is home to me. But if I have my wishes, it’s going to be filled with music, and it’s going to be filled with music at a level I’ve never seen before.“
From the best-selling country artist of all time, and the 3rd best-selling artist in all of music, these were weighty words, and by December, Garth was doubling down on just what kind of impact he wanted his return to have. Garth announced on the TV show The Talk that he was planning a world tour, and that “If I may say so, the whole goal in life is to make whatever you’ve done before look small.”
Garth later told Electric Barnyard, “Our job is to make sure that these people that came in the 90”²s come back and go, ‘Gah dang it, I didn’t know it could get any better.’ ”¦We’re on the blueprints right now. We’re going to build a stage and a lighting rig that will hopefully blow people away. And we’ve actually got a sound system that has never been used before that’s coming, a new technology. So everyone in the room can feel the thump. We’re going to bring it in, we’re going to be proud of it, and it’s going to be loud.”
READ: What Todd Snider Really Thinks About Garth Brooks
No doubt, Garth is about to embark on a world tour, and he already has five warmup shows booked at Ireland’s Croke Park in late July, though the shows have been causing local controversy because of bylaws not allowing shows to be played on consecutive nights.
But will any new music be part of his return?
Windmills Country reports that Garth Brooks has been working on new, original material, including a song from songwriter Brice Long according to Janine Appleton, two by Caitlyn Smith, and one by Marc Beeson and Allen Shamblin called “Send ‘Em On Down The Road”. Whether these make it on to any new release is yet to be determined, but the fact he is working with writers means new music will likely be part of his return.
Garth has also been mentioned in connection with Scott Borchetta’s new joint venture with Cumulus Media called NASH Icons. In late March, Cumulus CEO Lew Dickey specifically mentioned Garth’s name as a potentially signee to the new Big Machine imprint. Garth has also been the centerpiece in a potential format split in country radio that could see artists from the past 25 years receive their own “classic” format.
Whatever the specifics of what Garth announces on 7/7, make no mistake, Garth Brooks wants to shake up the country music world like never before. Whether it will be for the good or the bad, we’ll just have to see.
July 3, 2014 @ 11:14 am
Can’t wait for this announcement. I never understood the overall hatred that a lot of people have for him. Certainly several cuts above what we have to suffer through today, but even I’m the 90s, he was still one of my favorite artists. Definitely over the top on the stage, but that’s what he is….an entertainer. Either way, probably can’t afford what he’ll likely ask for anyway
July 3, 2014 @ 12:32 pm
Every country singer from Garth’s era should be thanking him for his return, because he’s wayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy more country than anybody on country radio now. He will undoubtedly get radio play.
July 3, 2014 @ 1:23 pm
He is already on tour in Ireland and has been for a couple months now. Well that’s what it says on http://www.garthbrookstourdates.com. It says he is still over there for the rest of July.
July 3, 2014 @ 2:51 pm
Sorry to scoop your scoop, but Garth has been asking for/receiving new song submissions here in NV for weeks. Might not be part of this 7/7 announcement, but YES, new music is coming.
July 3, 2014 @ 3:43 pm
I don’t think people want loud and to feel the thump. I think people just want good country music that moves a heart and gives chills. I was never a big fan of Garth but I just hope he does not want to be more “broer” than bro-country.
July 3, 2014 @ 6:28 pm
I’m firmly in this camp , Marc . Garth is the male Shania , in my view . Or vice versa . A whole lotta ” Look at me “..a whole lotta noise and spectacle, smoke and mirrors from both of these artists. Both pushed country pop-ward further than just about anyone had before , both brought in fans of ‘country ‘ who were NEVER fans of country prior to them hitting the scene and , in my opinion , both have unremarkable vocal talents . Marketing, marketing, marketing,….that’s all I see when Shania’s or Garth’s names come up .
And WHY does it have to be loud with a lotta thump ? For the ROCK and ROLL crowd , of course .
July 3, 2014 @ 7:05 pm
Counterpoints:
The Dance
If Tomorrow Never Comes
Much Too Young (to Feel This Damn Old)
Unanswered Prayers
Friends in Low Places
Beaches of Cheyenne
The River
July 3, 2014 @ 9:38 pm
Eric,
Still does not do anything. As Albert states “unremakable vocal talents.” For that time period give me Randy, Alan, Darryl, George, Doug Stone, Chestnut, Tritt, Sammy Kershaw etc. I think Garth was a marketing god but my personal opinion is he was more show.
July 4, 2014 @ 5:48 pm
Disagree about his voice. Garth Brooks in his early album era had a texture to his vocals that even surpassed George Strait, in my opinion.
July 4, 2014 @ 10:07 am
Eric,
I agree that Garth had some good songs, but he was the least gifted vocalist of his generation. His Rock style concerts and his marketing genius are what made him so successful. I’ll bet you can’t name one singer who was popular between say 1986 and 1992, who was a less talented singer. Here’s a list I came up with in my mind.
In no particular order:
Randy Travis
Keith Whitley
Ricky Van Shelton
Dwight Yoakam
Vince Gill
Alan Jackson
Clint Black
Travis Tritt
Mark Chesnutt
Joe Diffie
Doug Stone
Sammy Kershaw
Tracy Lawrence
Tracy Byrd
Garth would be the the least impressive singer on this list, yet he’s had more success than all of them. Marketing works wonders.
July 4, 2014 @ 1:16 pm
Did not understand the love for this guy.
I do not like his voice at all. straining for notes, and often sounded out of tune to me.
And as someone pointed out, there were all kinds of really good singers on the radio at that time. Good marketing.
July 4, 2014 @ 5:53 pm
I have heard songs from most of the artists on that list. In my opinion, Garth had a unique style with his heavy use of mid-phrase frequency variations, while the others used a more smooth form of crooning. In other words, Garth had a harder twang than most.
July 3, 2014 @ 4:15 pm
Maybe the announcement is for the much anticipated sophomore release of Chris Gaines.
July 3, 2014 @ 6:32 pm
I still listen to the Chris Gaines record . I thought that was some terrific pop songwriting and I always appreciated the fact that Garth didn’t release it under his name and try to sell it as anything BUT pop music . It certainly wasn’t country back then …although today it would be .
July 3, 2014 @ 6:35 pm
And now, thanks to the Dublin Council it doesn’t look like the Dublin concerts will go forward. They refuses licenses for the last two and Garth’s contract with the promoter is 5 or nothing.
July 3, 2014 @ 7:17 pm
I am looking forward to seeing what Garth is going to do. Hopefully he will find some good country songs and put some enthusiasm into them. I received the box set, but it seemed he was only going through the motions. I could only listen to it once. Still it has to be better than 95% of what is on the radio now, but that’s not saying much.
July 4, 2014 @ 10:33 pm
Absolutely will buy his new music, absolutely will go to his show.
In a world of ridiculously overpriced acts, Garth has always been decent to his fans, and delivers shows, merch, and a concert experience at a reasonable, affordable price. Who else can say they do that, currently?
Garth wrote the book on country music marketing success. Stand back, sellout shows and record music sales are going to happen.
The haters will never get his appeal….and Garth probably won’t care. He’ll be the one laughing all the way to the bank.
July 5, 2014 @ 2:11 pm
His ticket prices were more than fair. Garth and Trisha are two of the nicest people you’ll ever meet.
July 7, 2014 @ 8:23 am
Whatever point you were trying to make, you lost me on “haters”.
July 7, 2014 @ 7:28 am
7/7 “The Wait is Over”?? I wonder if he’s referring to the release of Dale Watson’s “Truckin’ Sessions 3”?