Country singer Garth Brooks has faced ups and downs throughout his career.

Brooks rose to fame in 1989 with the release of his self-titled debut album. Since then, he has won two Grammy Awards, 23 Academy of Country Music Awards, two CMT Awards, 10 CMA Awards and many more.

“It’s always fun (to hear my music on the radio) because what happens immediately is you flash back to the faces in the crowd singing it, and you see the joy,” Brooks shared exclusively. We weekly in November 2023.

Amid his musical fame, Brooks also endured a number of scandals. He admitted to cheating on his first wife. Sandy Mahlin 1989, almost 35 years before an anonymous hairstylist accused him of sexual assault and battery. (Brooks denied the claims.)

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Keep scrolling to revisit Brooks’ ups and downs:

1986

Brooks married Mahl and they later welcomed daughters Taylor, August and Allie.

1989

Three years later, Brooks released his debut album. Around the same time he was accused of cheating against Mahl. In a 1993 interview, he admitted to being unfaithful Barbara Walters.

“After I wore out a pair of jeans while I was on my knees begging her to take me back,” Brooks said, confirming that he and Mahl had reconciled.

1993

Brooks sang “The Star-Spangled Banner” at the Super Bowl, but almost had to cancel at the last minute. According to former NFL executive Don Weiss‘ book The Making of the Super Bowl: The Inside Story of the World’s Greatest Sporting EventBrooks had wanted to debut his “We Shall Be Free” video during the broadcast. The music video contained images of riots and cross burnings, leading the TV network to remove the controversial clip from its programming schedule. Weiss reported that this caused Brooks to leave the stadium less than an hour before kickoff.

Brooks and the TV executives eventually came to a compromise and the country singer agreed to perform after they aired the video anyway.

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1999

Brooks created a fictional character named Chris Gaines and released a rock album with the title Garth Brooks in… the life of Chris Gaines. The project was initially supposed to serve as the soundtrack for a film titled The Lamb, in which Brooks would play a rock star, but the film was never made. In November, Brooks hosted Saturday evening live as himself, but performed as Gaines for his musical number without acknowledging that Gaines was really him.

2000

Brooks and Mahl parted ways and issued a statement to Billboard at the time.

“Sandy and I both agree that we need a divorce,” Brooks said in a statement. “Right now we are focusing on the impact this will have on the children and how we can best deal with that, to remain parents even if we do not remain husband and wife.”

Later that year, Brooks started dating Trisha Jaarwood. They first met in 1987, while Yearwood was married to the first husband Christopher Latham. Brooks and Yearwood married in December 2005.

2013

Brooks was sued for fraud by a former business partner Lisa Sanderson, who claimed he had not paid her a salary for 20 years. Sanderson also accused Brooks of tax fraud. He denied the accusations. At trial, Brooks argued that a $226,000 loan was not a gift, as Sanderson had claimed. A jury ruled in favor of Brooks.

2023

Brooks and Yearwood opened their own Nashville bar in November, called Friends in Low Places, after his popular song. Before the bar opened, Brooks made headlines for confirming that the establishment planned to serve Bud Light after the brand faced backlash for its partnership with trans influencer Dylan Mulvaney.

“Everyone has their opinion, but inclusivity will always apply to me. I think diversity is the answer to the problems that are here and the problems that are coming,” he said in a Facebook Live video in June. “If you want to come to Friends in Low Places, come in, but come in with love. Come in with tolerance, patience. Come in with an open mind, and it’s cool. If you’re one of those people who just can’t do that, I understand. If you’re ever one of those people who wants to try it, come.”

That same year, Brooks said Us that he was ‘dependent’ on his wife.

“I told someone the other day, I feel so helpless because I can’t do anything without her,” he said exclusively in August. “There’s nothing I can’t do with her and there’s nothing I can do without her. It’s a blessing and a curse that you feel so free and independent when she’s around, and so dependent when she’s not. I don’t think she feels that way at all, but I know she does.

2024

An anonymous woman sued Brooks for assault and battery, claiming in court documents obtained by CNN in October that the singer raped her in 2019 when she was hired as a hairstylist.

Prior to the filing, Brooks filed his own complaint in an attempt to stop the hairstylist from repeating her claims. In the motion, he denied the bill.

“Defendant’s allegations are untrue,” the filing states. “Defendant is, however, well aware of the substantial, irreparable harm that such false allegations would cause to Plaintiff’s well-deserved reputation as a decent and caring person, together with the inevitable damage to his family and the irreparable damage to his career and livelihood that would result if she made good on her threat to ‘publicly file’ her fabricated lawsuit.”

Brooks did not immediately comment on the lawsuit. Us reached out for comment.

If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, please contact the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673) or visit rainn.org.