The allegations that have come down the pike against country music superstar Garth Brooks are so shocking that nobody knows quite what to make of them. Not his friends in Nashville — and not even his enemies in the country music capital of the world!
As we’ve been reporting, the 62-year-old country music crooner is being accused by a former hairstylist-slash-makeup artist of violently sexually assaulting her and behaving inappropriately towards her while she worked for him at various points in the past. And her allegations took an entirely new dimension this week, when Brooks countersued the woman, revealed her name in court documents after previously only referring to her as Jane Roe, and filed docs that stated she thought he was considering having a HIT put out on her!! Seriously!! This whole saga is one shocking turn after another!
And like we said up top, we’re not the only ones who are shocked by it all. According to a Nashville insider who spoke to People on Thursday, pretty much everyone connected to the country music biz throughout the central Tennessee town can’t believe what is being alleged there. That source summed it up by noting that allegations against the Friends In Low Places crooner have shocked his supporters AND his detractors in equal measure:
“Everybody is shocked. Even people that don’t like him were shocked.”
Wow!
It’s definitely out of the blue when even somebody’s enemies are taken aback by it, ya know?! Whether the allegations end up being proven in court or not, just the reveal alone is clearly rocking Nashville right now. Friend and foe alike, they’ve all been thrown off-kilter!!
It must be doubly surprising considering how there hasn’t (at least not yet…) been a slow drip of more allegations from other people, too. Think about the ongoing situation involving Diddy; lawyers are coming out of the woodwork indicating that DOZENS of people still have yet to tell their alleged stories there. That same spread hasn’t come out in the claims being made against Trisha Yearwood‘s husband. So, yeah, the former hairstylist’s allegations are certainly shocking insofar as they are standing alone!
Remember, Garth has also very strongly denied those sexual assault and misconduct allegations. In a previous statement released right when the claims first surfaced, he alleged blackmail:
“I have been hassled to no end with threats, lies, and tragic tales of what my future would be if I did not write a check for many millions of dollars.”
And straight-up called the legal action a “hush money” grab:
“Hush money, no matter how much or how little, is still hush money. In my mind, that means I am admitting to behavior I am incapable of—ugly acts no human should ever do to another. We filed suit against this person nearly a month ago to speak out against extortion and defamation of character. We filed it anonymously for the sake of families on both sides. I want to play music… I want to continue our good deeds going forward. It breaks my heart [that] these wonderful things are in question now. I trust the system, I do not fear the truth, and I am not the man they have painted me to be.”
Based on this insider’s new reveal, it sounds like friends and enemies all seem to have thought Garth is “not the man they have painted me to be,” as he noted in his denial. Ultimately, we’ll see how all this plays out in court. But for now, everybody is shocked! Oh, to be a fly on the wall in pretty much any Nashville recording studio right about now…
If you or someone you know has experienced sexual violence and would like to learn more about resources, consider checking out https://www.rainn.org/resources.
[Image via Judy Eddy/WENN/Avalon]
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