Garth Brooks Lasted Just 24 Hours in Nashville When He Was Starting Out

Nowadays, Garth Brooks is widely known as one of the most successful entertainers of all time. But the country singer wasn’t always so celebrated.

Many years before the Tulsa, Oklahoma, native would be worth anything close to the $400 million net worth he carries today, Brooks was just another struggling musician. Upon his first trip to Nashville, he only lasted a mere 24 hours before heading home.

Garth Brooks catapulted to fame in the early 1990s

Brooks’ self-titled debut album hit shelves in 1989. And that very same year, he landed his first No. 1 hit on the country charts with “If Tomorrow Never Comes.”

Over the next decade or so, countless more hits and Diamond albums — those which sell 10 million copies — followed. Brooks became synonymous with songs like “The Dance,” “Friends with Low Places,” “The Thunder Rolls,” and many others.

But after his 2001 album Scarecrow, Brooks stepped away from music for more than a decade. When he returned with 2014’s Man Against Machine, his legacy was already well secure. Yet, fans welcomed him back with open arms. That album went Platinum, too, and spawned hits like “Wrapped Up in You” and “Squeeze Me In,” featuring wife Trisha Yearwood.

But Garth Brooks’ first trip to Nashville wasn’t what he expected

In a 2021 interview with CBS This Morning, Brooks opened up about his first time visiting Nashville. The then-aspiring musician got a real wake-up call upon his arrival.

“I go to Nashville thinking everything’s going to be straw hats and gooseneck trailers, right?” Brooks said. “And everything is suit and ties. It’s business. I’m not ready for that.”

The singer didn’t let that discourage him from adjusting to what he now knew was expected of him. He eventually achieved fame, but Brooks wouldn’t say he dealt with it in the best way.

“I probably didn’t handle [fame] well,” he told CBS This Morning. “A nation watches you grow up, right? So you’re going to make decisions where you’re going to go, ‘Man, I wish I could take that one back.’ But the truth is now if changing anything then meant any part of now would change, no thank you.”

Garth Brooks traces his success back to 1 song

Brooks established himself as a country music icon early on. In fact, he credits his 1990 single “The Dance” from his very first album for putting him on the map in a big way. Though it set the bar high for his career, Brooks has no regrets.

“A thousand people can hear it, and each one will take whatever it is to them from that song,” the now-60-year-old said. “It’s sweet. So there’s the blessing and the curse. The blessing is you found the song that defines you. Some artists never get to. The curse is it was way back off that first record.”