Garth Brooks Faces Extortion, Denies Sexual Assault Allegations

Garth Brooks revealed that he faced relentless pressure and demands for “millions of dollars” before being sued by a woman alleging sexual assault and rape.

 

For the past two months, I’ve been overwhelmed by threats, lies, and dire warnings about my future if I didn’t pay millions in hush money,” the 62-year-old country legend said in a statement to Page Six on Thursday.

It’s felt like having a loaded gun pointed at me,” he added. “Hush money, whether big or small, is still hush money. In my mind, paying would be an admission of actions I am incapable of — acts no one should ever commit against another human being.

Brooks confirmed that he filed a lawsuit against the woman nearly a month ago, accusing her of extortion and defamation. He explained that he did so anonymously, hoping to protect the families involved.

I want to play music tonight. I want to keep doing good things,” Brooks expressed. “It breaks my heart that these positive efforts are now being questioned. But I trust the system. I’m not afraid of the truth, and I am not the person they’re making me out to be.

According to a complaint obtained by CNN, the woman—identified as “Jane Roe”—claimed to be Brooks’ former hairstylist and makeup artist. She accused Brooks of raping her in 2019 while she worked for him. Additionally, she alleged that he frequently exposed himself to her, changed clothes in front of her, spoke about his sexual fantasies, and sent explicit text messages.

Roe also claimed that Brooks made repeated comments about wanting a threesome with his wife, Trisha Yearwood, to whom he’s been married since 2005.

As Brooks noted in his statement, he filed legal paperwork in an effort to prevent these “fabricated allegations” from being made public. In a September 13 filing, Brooks asked the court to put a stop to what he described as Roe’s “ongoing extortion, defamation, and false allegations” that he said would irreparably damage his reputation, family, career, and livelihood.

 

In response to Brooks’ statement, Roe’s legal team told CNN they were confident that he would be held accountable. “We applaud our client’s courage in moving forward with her complaint,” attorneys Douglas H. Wigdor, Jeanne M. Christensen, and Hayley Baker said.

They added that the lawsuit highlights that sexual predators exist not only in corporate America, Hollywood, and the rock and rap industries but also within country music.

Trisha Yearwood, 60, has not yet commented on the lawsuit. Her representative did not respond to Page Six’s request for a statement. Despite the controversy, Brooks and Yearwood, married for nearly two decades, have long been open about their love for one another.