Garth Brooks is finally explaining why he chose not to perform at Donald Trump's inauguration.
During Brooks' most recent Inside Studio G, a Facebook live chat he hosts every Monday, Garth explained that he was originally approached by billionaire Steve Wynn about performing at the inauguration, and he decided to "leave it up to karma."
"We left it up to karma," Garth Brooks, who performed at Barack Obama's inauguration in 2008, said. "If Cincinnati goes two weekends instead of one, then of course we are out. Sure enough Cincinnati did five shows, two weekends, and backed us up into there. So we got knocked out of it."
Ticket sales for Garth's current tour were so in demand that he realized he needed to add more Cincinnati tour dates, which ended up conflicting with the date that the 45th President of the United States is sworn in.
Why Garth Brooks isn't playing the inauguration: https://t.co/2LdkW4tkmi pic.twitter.com/UIuMuAAO5K"I'm going to tell you, with this whole presidential thing: We've got one going out, pray for him and his family. And for the president going in, pray for him and his family to guide this nation," Brooks said during the Facebook Live video. "Let's stay together. Love, unity, that's what it's all about."— CBS News (@CBSNews) January 17, 2017
Garth added: "In the immortal words of Martin Luther King, the most durable thing that we've known is love. It will always be that way. Again, can't thank the Obamas enough for serving this country, and may God hold Trump's hand in the decisions that he makes in this country's name as well."
Garth Brooks Explains Why He Won't Perform at Trump's Inauguration--For Him, It's All About 'Prayer' https://t.co/a5yQyqEqxOAlthough Garth Brooks will not be performing at the inauguration, there are plenty other performers set to take the stage.— Davita Bellena (@DavitaDavino) January 18, 2017
- 3 Doors Down
- Toby Keith
- Lee Greenwood
- Jackie Evancho
- Big & Rich
- the Rockettes
- the Mormon Tabernacle Choir
- The Piano Guys
- Sam Moore (of the duo Sam & Dave)
- Tim Rushlow
- The Frontmen of Country
- Travis Greene
- DJ Ravidrums
- the Talladega College Tornado Marching Band
Earlier this week, country singer Toby Keith defended his decision to take part in the inauguration, and said he would not apologize for "performing for our country or military."
'I Won't Apologize': Toby Keith Defends His Decision to Perform at Donald Trump's Inauguration! https://t.co/azUFnm2RlR"I don't apologize for performing for our country or military," the country singer told Entertainment Weekly in a statement. "I performed at events for previous presidents [George W.] Bush and [Barack] Obama and over 200 shows in Iraq and Afghanistan for the USO."— Trump Super PAC???????? (@TrumpSuperPAC) January 18, 2017
Jennifer Holliday made headlines when she dropped out of the list of performers, and then issued an apology for those she offended by originally accepting the invitation.
Here are the musicians performing at Donald Trump's Inauguration - by my fellow @Forbes contributor @PopBangHugh https://t.co/9amYxFjdr4"I was honestly just thinking that I wanted my voice to be a healing and unifying force for hope through music to help our deeply polarized country," she said. "Regretfully, I did not take into consideration that my performing for the concert would actually instead be taken as a political act against my own personal beliefs and be mistaken for support of Donald Trump and Mike Pence."— Mark Beech (@Mark_Beech) January 18, 2017
Although Garth Brooks says a scheduling conflict lead to him dropping out of the list of performers, some of his fans aren't buying it, and are furious with the country music singer.
I guess @garthbrooks is not a patriot. Get your money back, Ohio. https://t.co/ETbeAME3Ev— Donna (@CTide15) January 18, 2017
Country first, nothing comes above the nation. @garthbrooks just couldnt handle it the way @TobyKeithMusic did. https://t.co/vwNAO4pSGK— Tommy BMCR Demerit (@Demerits) January 18, 2017
@garthbrooks just replaced your songs on my iPhone with Toby Keith songs. To bad. The ppl your pleasing hates country music.— Hillary's Cankles (@HillarysAnkles) January 18, 2017
@garthbrooks I sure would of taken off my hat to you had you played for @realDonaldTrump. I thought you weren't the typical liberal.— The Whatsit (@The_Whatsit) January 18, 2017
So sad @garthbrooks bows out of #TrumpInaugural. So much for doing what is right. #NoPatriotism https://t.co/Fo258hRPOlDonald Trump's inauguration will take place on Friday, January 20 on the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol. The security gates will officially open at 6 a.m. and at 11:30 a.m, the opening remarks will begin.— KallieTinSC (@KallieTinSC) January 18, 2017
[Featured Image by Rick Diamond/Getty Images]