How is Garth Brooks the highest selling American artist?

He was everywhere in the 90's. He combined a lot of different styles with Country and attracted a lot of people who wouldn't normally listen to country. Plus the rise of Grunge and Rap drove some Rock fans toward Country

Yeah, like r1 said, he was huge in the '90s. I saw him in concert in 1992 but I wasn't that familiar with his songs. I tagged along with family members but everybody was singing along. Even if you don't like his music, it's easy to understand why songs like "Friends in Low Places", "The Dance", "If Tomorrow Never Comes" and "The Thunder Rolls" were and remain popular - singalong songs, Karaoke anthems, etc. He rose to fame at a time when country had a huge renaissance in the '90s.

I think one of his albums was giving Michael Jackson's Dangerous a run for its money in 1991.

He also puts on a good show so he also became a huge touring force.

He was huge in the 90s. Country music mostly stayed away from their identity songs, like the “drinking beer with my dog because my wife left me” bullshit, in the 90s and went more country-pop with slick productions and they had huge stage shows that rivaled or exceeded pop. That is the reason why Garth & Reba were able to sell larger amounts of albums & concert tickets than ever seen before in country. Later this pop thing exploded further as the Dixie Chicks appealed to teens, Faith & Shania basically went pure pop to huge sales numbers and mainstream success. Then 9/11 happened, the “get them Muslims“ and I love my fucking country America bullshit happened and country went further identity music than ever before. Faith is a good example: 1999-2000 Breathe was about the biggest song of any any genre and the album sold huge, post 9/11 her album Cry bombed. Country of the late 80s to 2000 was actually a really great genre before redneck retards took over like Toby Keith. For a brief moment in the 90s class in country was happening then 9/11 and they all returned to their trailer trash roots.

I’ve only heard “Friends in Low Places” at weddings and it’s a really fun song, I imagine it’s probably big in bars and could explain the UK following.

Brooks was very popular in the 90's, i remember listening talk about his big sales (and it was in a spanish radio station).

In fact country is a genre people still buy albums, Kanye can claim he made Taylor Swift famous but the truth is she was selling way more albums than him by the time of the incident.

In the 90's even pop singers (Ronan Keating) or R&B artist (All 4 one) made cover of country songs, there were way more variety in the artist (a couple of years ago the number of women on the country airplay chart was incredibly small, even when they were way better music that males who were at the top of the popularity of bro country)

Also, he came along at that time between the demise of the 45 and the rise of mp3's when if you wanted that song playing on the radio that you liked, you had little choice but to go out and buy the album, even if most of it was shit.

How did a clown become their president? It’s easy, they have absolutely zero taste!

Also, Garth was a country singer that traditional country music fans could like and new country music fans could like. He also appealed to people who may not have liked country music to begin with.

Let's not forget too, he was supportive of gay and lesbian rights way back in the '90s when it still was risky for a singer to express those views. He did an interview with Barbara Walters telling the world his sister was a lesbian and he was very supportive of her (she was also in his band, I believe).

R8 his song We Shall Be Free actually references the right to love who you want to...

he’s an egomaniac but a nice guy.

And don't forget, he was at his hottest then. I still remember his song Shameless:

"I'm shameless

Honey, I don't have a prayer

Every time I see you standing there

I go down upon my knees"

The "down upon my knees" part made me go weak in mine!

His fans voted for Trump. The unseen underbelly of the U. S. of A.

It's called marketing.

Apparently he was an Obama fan too

Was it also because he was kinda cuddly good-looking?

i will say back then he and a couple of his bandmates sure looked good in their very very snug jeans on stage...

[quote] I’ve only heard “Friends in Low Places” at weddings and it’s a really fun song,

I attended a wedding in the 90s, and at the reception it was requested three times, by groups of guys, as a karaoke tune.

because people mistook him for Girth Brooks

If they did the calculation as sales by pound he'd drop down to about 130th place.

I remember the hissy fit he threw when he found out that record stores were selling used copies of his CD's and he wasn't getting a piece of the pie.

He's no Chris Gaines.

Shania Twain is the best selling female country artist. Her "Come On Over" album has sold 40 million copies (20 million in the US alone). And she has two other albums that sold over five million in the US alone.

Didn't he completely stop working for a decade so his ex-wife wouldn't get more alimony?

R19 yeah, his greedy ass was going after pawnshops etc trying to get a cut of 2nd Hand sales. Maybe if the record was that good, people would not trade it in. Probably a nice guy in person but definitely a greedy egomaniac.

R10, You mean the Billy Joel song?

I love that his wife (Trisha Yearwood) calls him "Gartha Stewart."

I hate how in interviews he always refers to Trisha Yearwood as "Ms Yearwood"

r3 Good summary. That country pop wave was really random. I think it peaked in mainstream appeal from 1998-2000 with all the inescapable singles from the Come On Over album (particularly You're Still the One which was #3 on the year-end chart), Breathe (#1 on the 2000 year-end list), and Lonestar's Amazed reaching #1 out of nowhere.

Did the country pop wave lead way for the more folksy pop like Jewel, Michelle Branch, and Vanessa Carrollton? Like I can’t imagine those artists getting mainstream play today

And I love this song by Trisha! Definitely country pop

90's country was a true renaissance and a brand new vibe. I don't count Shania Twain as a great talent - but otherwise the list of great new artists who came to prominence during this time is long. There have been some good threads on Datalounge about this over the years. Garth, Vince Gill, Alan Jackson, Dwight Yoakam, Lyle Lovett, Tim McGraw, Faith Hill, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Patty Loveless. Pam Tillis, Kathy Mattea, Trisha Yearwood, Leann Rimes, Lori Morgan - the comebacks of Tanya and Johnny Cash and Reba moving into superstar status - competing with the greatest Divas in music. Great stuff. Garth Brooks wasn't my favorite, but there are a lot less deserving people out there. Country music is far from my favorite music - but everyone I've listed here I like. Of course we like the music we grow up on - but it was a fantastically creative time. They had to play the game still - but the music evolved and was GOOD.

R30 People don't realize how big Reba was in the 90s, especially touring. In 1994 Streisand and Reba were the only two females on the US Top Tours list and in 1995 Reba was the only female.

R31 Top Ten*

Pukes on this thread.

R33 why are you here then

R31 What are your favorite Reba songs? I only know her from her television show she had in the early/mid 2000’s. I didn’t know she was that big of a singer

Country isn't that popular now, but he was huge then. He's not horrible, but I can't imagine listening to more than a song or two. Popular music cratered a long time ago and I'm not someone who wallows in nostalgia or listen to "classic rock or whatever.

REBA is a superstar singer. Yes, she over ornaments and trills but her voice was spectacular. Too big for country music. She's a pretty cool woman. She isn't sophisticated but her voice was not just a heartbreak song so she elevated the whole fucking game. In song choice, video and concerts. I'll let R31 answer your question though R35.

Reba, showing what she can do. #1.

More refined, lower tones and a gorgeous build on a familiar song. Tori Amos covers this song too. It's pretty. Reba has a beautiful voice. It's quality in every way. She has some questionable habits as a singer but her voice is first class and she's a real singer. Exhibit #2.

The best tour you never saw. Kelly C and Reba. Beautiful Disaster. Gorgeous singing. #3.

Reba took her career to the next level in the '90s. She did great videos (Does He Love You), movies (Tremors), and she recorded some of her best songs. Like Brooks, she recorded songs that were anthems (Is There Life Out There, Why Haven't I Heard from You) that people could sing along to or sing at Karaoke.

#4. Reba was spectacular on Broadway. Not just okay. Or Okay for a pop country singer. She deserved a Tony. Her characterization AND vocal production put the OG star to shame. (Bernadette Peters) Reba is older now, but she was very ambitious and didn't fail on Broadway. She blew them away. Not just with Irving Berlin songs about Annie Oakley. She did a beautiful job with the Rodgers and Hammerstein songs of South Pacific too. She's something, Reba.

In the ‘90s, people bought actual CDs. Record sales peaked then and will never reach those numbers again.

This is my favorite Trisha Yearwood song. And it features Don Henley on backup vocals, and a future Oscar winner in the video.

Deplorables pay like 150 dollars a month mortage... they have disposable cash.

He has a lot of fans who aren't deplorables. His touring is huge. He even dueted with George Michael back in the day.

This deserves a VEVO release. Kelly and Reba kick ASS.

I love Trisha Yearwood R44. She's has the best combination of sensitive, evocative and powerful voice in country music. Such a beautiful tone. She loved Linda Ronstadt and we can hear that influence in her singing. But she's got so much more going on. Walkaway Joe is almost a mundane song, but it's not when you have the nuance of Trisha Yearwood. I love that song. Appropriately with an Eagle.

After the wave ended in 2001, I don't remember there being any huge crossover country pop hits until 2007 with Before He Cheats. Then Taylor really blew up in 2008, and then in 2010 we got that fucking Lady Antebellum song.

OMG, remember Terri Clark? She was so dykey!

Trisha singing, for real. Videos are kind of cheating. 1990s country women could sing. Live.

Love Trisha Yearwood too. Her version of How Do I Live is superior to LeAnn Rime's in every way.

Weren't Leann and Trisha's versions of How Do I Live pitted against each other at the Grammys one year? That was another HUGE song that was fucking everywhere.

Garth Brooks has sold more music than anyone in history except Elvis and the Beatles. He is a huge star in Ireland as well, for his most recent concerts series (later cancelled) he sold more than 400,000 tickets -- in a country of 4.5 millions.

Garth is apparently very well-endowed.

[quote]He has a lot of fans who aren't deplorables. His touring is huge. He even dueted with George Michael back in the day.

Yeah, not all of his fans are deplorables. There is a faction of country music fans who all pretty much hate country singers who are Democrats or have spoken out against Republican policiticans(e.g. the Dixie Chicks). Back when Obama ran in 2008, Faith Hill and Tim McGraw got hate from some country fans because they supported Obama. After Carrie Underwood won American Idol, she did some interview where she talked about working for John Kerry's 2004 presidental campaign and she got some hate for that revelation.

Another Reba/Kelly and the closest Reba ever came to rapping.

Garth’s forearms are heavenly in OP’s thumbnail.

R51 That was one of my favorite Grammy moments. Both recorded the song. Trisha's was a country hit, Leann's was a country and pop hit. Both were nominated but Leann got to perform it on the show. Right after she sang, they presented the award and Trisha won, loved it.

I didn't read all the replies but he was VERY calculating. When he was popular, he sold a lot of double (or more) CDs so they would count twice (or more) towards certifications. Technically, it counts because he did sell two-in-one but he often sold them at a price of one.

So, if he sold a million of a double CD it would count as having sold two million. Shania started doing this as well. It was a very calculating and a bit cynical.

He's also a good performer with feel good party songs. Nothing very artistic and he did sorta cheat the system with the double, triple and more CD bundling.

Brooks has repackaged his hits over and and over again. And his fans buy the same shit they already had.

^^^That and his selling double, triple, quadruple CDs just to up his certifications.

Martina McBride is the ULTIMATE FRAU! Every song in her catalog is something you would hear on Kathie Lee and Hoda. It's always either, "Women getting beaten to death" songs (Independence Day, Broken Wing), children getting beaten to death (Concrete Angel), or "You go, girl! Dance like nobody is watching!" frau facebook statuses in music form.

Her very worst is called God's Will, about a handicapped boy named Will. "Will don't walk too good, Will don't talk too good..." LMAO!

[quote] He doesn’t even have his music on YouTube or streaming!

That is by design, he is very controlling of his catalog. For several years, Walmart paid him a huge amount of money to be the exclusive retailer of his music.

R55 I'd say the closest Reba has come to rapping is the last verse of Fancy that starts "Now in this world, there's a lot of self-righteous hypocrites"

Great thread. I forgot all the shady things he has done in his career. I like Garth but he can be a complete narcissist.

I forgot about the "used CD" controversy. He really looked like an asshole during that phase. Especially since this was around the same time Pearl Jam was fighting Ticketmaster. Garth came off as completely greedy.

r62 I agree about her material, but she has a terrific voice.

R54: Carrie was insulted when she came in favour to gay marriage too, and she is probably the most successful country singer of the last two decades.

But not all country fans are like that, and there are defenitively a good bunch of country singers who are clearly on the left, all the Shane McAnally bunch, specially Kacey Musgraves.

I remember being extremely surprised when Brothers Osbourne included a gay couple on their Stay a little longer video

Kacey Musgraves has a huge gay following

Kacey is awesome. Trisha like Garth has also been very supportive.

Loretta Lynn has a large gay following too which is funny because she’s pro Trump

Loretta Lynn is gross. But yeah she has a large gay following of 80 year old men.

Loretta, at 80 and recovering from a stroke, could kick your ass, R70.

Loretta Lynn is a bit or a moron R71. She was born that way. A stupid woman with a voice that DOESN'T even belong in the same sentence with the great female country singers. She's got that hick charm and some funny sayings, but all her songs had the same tune and chord structure and she supported every Republican president through history. Loretta thinks Hitler was a mighty fine fella that never did nothing wrong to her. She's grotesque as her dresses. A stupid cow. And she couldn't kick me anywhere near my high round ass. I'd drop that nasty old bitch in the ditch and one of her drug addicted children she can't name would encourage her to write a female empowerment song about it. She's a proverbial doormat, bad mother, dishonest woman and a pretty bad yelping yodelling singer. She stands for everything that's wrong with country music, then and now. Secrets and lies. Loretta Lynn is just old. Nothing special about her. She sucks.

R72, you're stupid! You wrote of Loretta that she "is a bit or a moron".

A "bit"? Oh, you are stupid!

R72 I agree Loretta is like a female Toby Keith. She had an average voice, made goofy ass hillbilly songs and happened to right one song about birth control. What a game changer.

R74, I hope you are also R72. Otherwise, it means an entirely separate idiot posted "happened to RIGHT one song".

I am glad people see Garth for the shady shit he did as far as albums sold. I love his politics. He is a great liberal along with Trish. That doesn't mean I support his shady tactics. He was very popular for a short period of time. He exploited it with chart manipulation.

Loretta Lynn is a cunt. Who cares what the hell she did. Her IQ is that of an average 5th grader.

Did any of you bitches ever see the CMT Top 20 Countdown? It started at the beginning of 2001 when country pop was at its peak. The host, Lance Smith, missed his calling as a gay porn star.

Isn’t Toby Keith a Democrat?

I'm surprised no one here has mentioned that old DL thread about Garth and the porn guy.

That’s Girth Brooks - not Garth Brooks

[quote]Loretta Lynn has a large gay following too which is funny because she’s pro Trump

So is Reba.

R81 Reba is for gay rights and has never publicly stated her political party or supported for a Republican.

This was one of my favorite country pop songs back in the day, lol

r83 I remember that. It was her only hit, I think.

I was OBSESSED with this lesser-known Dolly song and video. Her pink dress was fabulous and the video was like a really bad gay acid trip.

While Loretta isn't necessarily in support of gay marriage, she also doesn't hate gays. Her quote on the subject , “I’m still an old Bible girl. God said you need to be a woman and man, but everybody to their own.” Is a very tolerant message for an 80 something year old mountain woman who is a member of the Churches of Christ denomination, which is to the right of Southern Baptists. She is basically saying, I don't believe in redefining marriage but you do you. It is clear she doesn't hate gay people or she and her gay designer wouldn't live together and be her best friend. It is like my great aunt, who has a lesbian grand-daughter, she hasn't become a PFLAG type, but she still loves her grand-daughter and welcomes her girlfriends into the family. She isn't going to be marching in a pride parade, but she also isn't going to be accepting of people calling for gays to be exterminated.

[quote] Garth Brooks has sold more music than anyone in history except Elvis and the Beatles.

This is only in America. Globally, he isn't close to being in the top 10. Madonna, Elvis, Michael Jackson, Queen, The Rolling Stones, etc. have all outsold him globally.

Loretta Lynn is a bigoted stupid hillbilly with a subpar IQ. She's a limited woman, in every way. A bit of a savant if you call knowing 5 guitar chords "special." That terrible unrefined way she sings - kinda throwing her voice up there in a yelp - is really unattractive. She's authentic. To a 1940 outhouse, I guess. Loretta lied about her age, her marriage, her children and who wrote her songs. Patsy Cline wasn't Loretta's best friend. Lots of people tolerated Loretta. She's cute in a special cousin sort of way. If she didn't have that old fag live with her - she'd be dead. Because she is full of bigoted SHIT and very scary biblical ideas. HICK. She's too much trash for her trailer. Her level of stupidity and bigotry doesn't need to be celebrated anymore. She's an embarrassment to Doo. Ha.

Obama gave Loretta Lynn the Presidential Medal of Freedom, so I don't think he agrees with you.

You have to remember Loretta grew up in a time when it was okay for grown men to marry children. That special time when you celebrated entering puberty and your wedding anniversary on the same day.

R89 That was literally the entire world until very recently. In my family, if you go back to my grandparents generation they almost all married between the ages of 14 and 16, though most married people close in age. For instance the one that was 14 married a guy who was 16. But, then if you go to my parent's generation, they all married between 18 and 20. Now, in my generation the average age is closer to 30, with at least 2 never married.

Reba's "What If," wirtten by Diane Warren. Has been re-released for the current crisis, with an updated music video.

[quote]Isn’t Toby Keith a Democrat?

He was registered as a Democrat for a long time and described himself as a conservative Democrat. He supported GWB and he eventually registered as a Independent. I recall maybe ten years ago or so-he said he had no issue with gay marriage and that he thought it was a waste of money and time for people to stop it.

R92 Partisanship in the South, is a strange thing.There are still white people, especially in the rural South, who will vote GOP for President, etc... but they still consider themselves Democrats. It is one reason why many Southern and Midwestern states choose not to have registration by party, and it is how you end up with people like Kim Davis in Kentucky being elected as Democrats. There is a county near me, that the GOP carries in every Presidential, Gubernatorial, Senate and House election, but if you want to win any local election such as Sheriff, Mayor, County or City Council, etc... you must still run as a Democrat. It is why, whereas the GOP controlled the Presidential elections in the South for decades, they didn't breakthrough in the Legislatures until the late 1990s/early 2000s. Things are changing now that the older generations are dying out, and people feel freer to openly follow their partisan choice. The South was, outside of Appalachia, solidly Democratic for around a century, and it was drilled into students and children that the Democrats were the only thing protecting white Southerners from annihilation. It has taken a longtime for those allegiances to die out.

[quote]and it is how you end up with people like Kim Davis in Kentucky being elected as Democrats. There is a county near me, that the GOP carries in every Presidential, Gubernatorial, Senate and House election, but if you want to win any local election such as Sheriff, Mayor, County or City Council, etc... you must still run as a Democrat.

I see this sort of thing in New Mexico. When it comes to presidential elections it's been mostly Democratic since 1992. But, with county or city level politics in some areas, you get a lot of DINO types especially the ones who get elected as county sheriff. A friend's deceased mother was a paramedic and a nurse in a rural county and she had a bunch of cop friends. She was a registered Democrat so she could vote in primaries for her cop friends if they ran for sheriff or for DINO friends who wanted to be town councilmen or county commissioners. The friend's mom voted GOP for state and national elections.