Garth Brooks explains why he chose to announce new sports-radio venture in KC
There is one Kansas City story that is shared every year at the Garth Brooks household.
It’s from 2007 when Brooks played nine sold-out shows at the T-Mobile Center. That afforded him the opportunity to take one of his daughters and their friends to a show by themselves.
“It was the oldest one that came,” Brooks recalled Tuesday at Kauffman Stadium, where he announced a new radio venture. “She was on the side of the stage. I was feeling pretty cool. And when the bra incident happened, a bra was thrown towards stage and somehow it wrapped itself perfectly around my headset where I couldn’t untie it.
“The song was ‘Shameless,’ it could not have been a more all-horrible, perfect storm. ... My daughter still at Thanksgiving brings that show up.”
Brooks earlier this year started the Big 615 country-music station on his SEVENS radio network, which is available on TuneIn Radio.
As part of his personal radio network, Brooks planned to roll out new stations, and on Tuesday he launched Tailgate Radio. It promises to play pulsating mutigenre music for fans at a stadium or at home.
Tailgate Radio will be hosted by ESPN’s Maria Taylor.
“My beautiful vision of this is the music kind of fades and comes into the gamecast or to someone telling you what the score is, then the music comes back up,” Brooks said.
Brooks made the announcement in front of a who’s who of Kansas City sports: Chiefs coach Andy Reid, president Mark Donovan, Current co-owner Chris Long, Royals CEO/chairman John Sherman, general manager J.J. Picollo, players Bobby Witt Jr. and Salvador Perez, along with former Sporting KC star Matt Besler.
Why did Brooks pick Kansas City for the launch? It wasn’t only because he threw out the ceremonial first pitch before Tuesday’s Royals-Pirates game.
“We came here to Kansas City for a lot of reasons,” Brooks said. “First, you’re looking at the guy that Kansas City kind of gave me my life. My mom was born here. First gig we ever played as an artist was at the Kansas City Opry, right here. And we played everything from Cowboy events, fairs, everything all the way up to arenas. We were lucky enough to open the Sprint Center here. ...
“I feel like this is home for me. I call it the land of common sense. The second I get here I feel comfortable. This is the perfect place to launch this radio station.”
Fans may be unfamiliar with the Kansas City Opry, which was later home to the Englewood Theater in Independence.
Brooks played that first show in June 1989, and a story in The Star’s archives noted he made $1,500, which was shared with five musicians.
There were just 334 people at the show.
Brooks is now known globally and has played at venues like, well, GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.
“Kansas City is special,” Brooks said, “... and you’re talking about a sports town. This is the city of champions. So it makes sense to do this here. ... So this was an honor and a joy.”
