GARTH BROOKS KICKS OFF BILLBOARD COUNTRY LIVE IN CONVERSATION IN NASHVILLE WITH EDITOR MELINDA NEWMAN

GARTH BROOKS KICKS OFF BILLBOARD COUNTRY LIVE IN CONVERSATION IN NASHVILLE WITH EDITOR MELINDA NEWMAN

DISCUSSES UPCOMING RADIO NETWORK LAUNCH, LAS VEGAS RESIDENCY, FRIENDS IN LOW PLACES BAR & HONKY-TONK, AND POSSIBLE NEW CHRIS GAINES MUSIC

Garth Brooks helped kick off Billboard Country Live in Conversation on June 7 at Marathon Music Works Nashville with an in-depth chat with Melinda Newman, Billboard’s executive editor, West Coast and Nashville.

Brooks’s conversation with Newman spanned a wide range of topics, including his announced SEVENS TuneIn radio network that will allow him to curate country music to be streamed internationally, plans for his Friends in Low Place Bar & Honky-Tonk, the fun he’s having with his Las Vegas residency shows, the state of country radio, and the possibility of new Chris Gaines music.    

Brooks said that his TuneIn radio network will give him “a chance to shrink the world” and show audiences more about the roots and the development of country music.  When he spoke about his current Las Vegas residency at The Colosseum at Caesars, Brooks commented that “in the stadium show you can hide. With the one-man show, it’s just you, them, nothing between us but the night. It’s just so good, it’s so fun.”

Brooks also shared his vision for his Friends in Low Places Bar & Honky-Tonk, which will open soon on Nashville’s lower Broadway.  “I know this sounds corny.  I want it to be the Chick-fil-A of honky-tonks … I want it to be a place you feel safe in, I want it to be a place where you feel like there are manners and people like one another. And yes, we’re going to serve every brand of beer. We just are. It’s not our decision to make.”

Brooks discussed future music, indicating that more Chris Gaines music might be in the works.  “The Gaines project was a lot of time put in — because it’s not natural, you’re acting on a record — but I want to do it simply for people who love the Gaines project.  And selfishly, I love the Chris Gaines record, so I want to do it for me. It challenged me as a vocalist.” He also said he’s working on a duets album with Trisha Yearwood and mentioned an additional duets album with other artists (whom he has not yet named).

Billboard Country Live in Conversation took place on the second day of Billboard Country Live, which featured live performances by Jelly Roll and Nate Smith; a celebration of the 2023 Country Power Players List; and artist panels including Carly Pearce, Bailey Zimmerman, Brian Kelley, Lauren Alaina, Megan Moroney and Lady A’s Hillary Scott.