GARTH BROOKS: OFFICIAL COUNTRY MUSIC HALL OF FAME MEMBER
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – Garth Brooks, Connie Smith and keyboard player Hargus “Pig” Robbins are the newest members of the Country Music Hall of Fame. They were inducted in a star-studded ceremony in Nashville Sunday night. George Strait, Bob Seger and James Taylor performed in tribute to Brooks. Lee Ann Womack and Merle Haggard saluted Smith. And Ronnie Dunn along with Ronnie Milsap played for Robbins. The tears started flowing for Brooks as he talked to reporters on the red carpet with wife Trisha Yearwood. He got more emotional as the night went on, thanking friends, family and industry professionals who helped him along the way.
GARTH BROOKS LOOKS AHEAD
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – Garth Brooks is kicking around ideas for a comeback. He says “we’re just going to start. It’s going to be fun.” Brooks retired to raise his kids, and now his youngest daughter, Allie, is a junior in high school. His wife, Trisha Yearwood, says Allie is ready for the couple to go on the road again because she is doing every after-school activity possible. Brooks said great songwriters “can birth a career, but the greatest ones can bring life back into one.” He said they will be “looking hard for songs just to see what the future might hold.” Brooks is 50 years old.
GEORGE STRAIT ON GARTH BROOKS
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – George Strait says Garth Brooks “transcends country music.” But he didn’t think that right away. Strait remembers Brooks opening a show for him years ago, sitting on the stage hanging his feet over while singing to the crowd. Strait says he thought to himself, “I’m not sure this is going to work out for the boy.” Strait says it’s been amazing to watch how Brooks exploded into the biggest-selling artist of all time, and then laid it all down to raise his kids.
TAYLOR SWIFT RELEASES ‘RED’
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – Taylor Swift says the word “conflicted” could describe a lot of the reasons why she wrote the songs on her new album, “Red.” She says they deal with a couple of “tumultuous relationships” where she didn’t know if she should stay or leave, trust her ex, or not believe a thing he said. Swift says she realized with her first single, “We Are Never Ever Getting Back Together,” that once she put it out there, there was no going back. She wrote 10 tracks by herself and six with other top songwriters. “Red” is out today.
JASON ALDEAN TO PLAY THREE STADIUMS NEXT YEAR
ATHENS, Ga. (AP) – Jason Aldean is playing three stadiums on his “Night Train” tour next year: Boston’s Fenway Park, Chicago’s Wrigley Field and his dream location: Sanford Stadium at the University of Georgia. Aldean is a Georgia native and lifelong Bulldogs fan. He says the college stadium was number-one on his list, and it’s probably the most excited he’s ever been about one of his shows. His “My Kinda Party” tour wraps up in Dallas on October 27th.
REBA MCENTIRE TO DEBUT NEW SONGS ON TV SHOW
UNDATED (AP) – Reba McEntire’s new TV show, “Malibu Country,” will feature some of her own songs. She tells “Entertainment Tonight” that she has written a lot of new tunes for the show, and there are two included in the first episode. Reba says she’s already talked to Blake Shelton and Kelly Clarkson about appearing. So it’s only a matter of writing them into the plot in an authentic way. She says “everything about this show’s got to be honest.” “Malibu Country” debuts November 2nd on ABC.
JERROD NIEMANN TO RELEASE NEW SINGLE
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – Jerrod Niemann is slowing things down with his new single, “Only God Could Love You More.” It’s the second release from his new album, “Free The Music.” Niemann co-wrote the ballad with buddies Lee Brice and Jon Stone. He says he wanted to keep the vocals simple, with no harmonies, because the song has a lot going on musically. It uses French horns and other orchestral instruments.