NEW YORK — Add Garth Brooks to the lineup of entertainers at the inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden.
"This is a great day in our household," the country music superstar said during a virtual press conference Monday, two days before Biden is to be sworn in. "This is not a political statement. This is a statement of unity."
Brooks, who joins Lady Gaga and Jennifer Lopez among others, performed during the inaugural celebration of President Barack Obama in 2009. He turned down a chance to play for President Donald Trump in 2017, citing a scheduling conflict.
Invited by incoming first lady Jill Biden, Brooks has known the Bidens for more than a decade, when Joe Biden was Obama's vice president.
Brooks said that for this week's inaugural, he will perform solo doing "broken down, bare-bones stuff," and hinted at covering material by songwriters from outside the U.S.
He does not plan to sing his socially conscious "We Shall Be Free," which he performed at the Obama inaugural.
Brooks praised the Bidens for being "hellbent on making things good" and said he welcomed the chance to help the country heal.
"I want to spend the next 10 years of my life not divided. I'm so tired of being divided," he said.
Sustain our coverage of culture, arts and literature.
Broadway's big night, the Tony Awards, will be held this Sunday. The new show, "New York, New York," is a…
Tuesday's surprise announcement of a commercial merger between Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund and the PGA Tour looks to end…
In the aftermath of the #MeToo movement, a new field has come to prominence in the film and theater industry,…
Littleton Alston, the statue's creator, is the first Black artist to have work represented in the national collection.
Astrud Gilberto, the Brazilian singer, songwriter and entertainer whose off-hand, English-language cameo on "The Girl from Ipanema" made her a…
At the Stax Music Academy in Memphis, students learn the fundamentals of music, building on the long legacy of R&B…
Minutes after jurors were to begin assembling in a courtroom, a calendar entry in the official court record said: "TRIAL…
France's beloved abbey has reached a ripe old age -- 1,000 years since the laying of its first stone.
The latest video game in Nintendo's critically acclaimed "Legend of Zelda" series has smashed sales records since its release several…
Kaija Saariaho, who wrote acclaimed works that made her the among the most prominent composers of the 21st century, died…
For decades, members of the Rastafari community have been persecuted and imprisoned for their ritualistic marijuana use. But the islands…
Dev Shah is the champion of the Scripps National Spelling Bee. The 14-year-old from Largo, Florida, had his spelling career…
The words will be engraved on the Europa Clipper spacecraft, set to launch from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in October…
In an era of music streaming and digital downloads, an old format is once again becoming popular. Modern music audiences…
Jurors have found "That '70s Show" star Danny Masterson guilty of two out of three counts of rape, and he…
