MEAWW.COM / ENTERTAINMENT / MUSIC

'Who is Garth Brooks?' ask trolls after Billboard Awards, irate fans wonder 'how people never heard' of the icon

The singer was presented with the prestigious Billboard Icon Award at the 2020 Billboard Music Awards on October 14

Country singer Garth Brooks who has been a 19-time Billboard Music Award winner is perhaps unknown to the general public. The singer was presented with the prestigious Billboard Icon Award at the 2020 Billboard Music Awards on October 14 that he received from pop sensation, CHER.

“Good evening everyone, especially you Trisha Yearwood,” Cher began announcing the coveted award. “It’s an honor for me to be here tonight to present the Billboard Icon Award to a true music legend and my friend, Garth Brooks. The Icon Award was created a decade ago to honor those outstanding artists who have achieved excellence in the recording studio and on the concert stage. Their passion for music has made them legends in their own time and that perfectly describes Garth Brooks.”

Following the kind words from CHER, Brooks accepted his award. “To Miss Cher, getting the award you got makes me feel cool, and cool is never a word I would use to describe me,” Brooks said. “If I had to thank one person, one entity, it would be God Almighty, for through Him all things are possible.” Billboard tweeted about the award: From the 2017 #BBMAs Icon Award recipient to 2020! @cher presents the Icon Award to @garthbrooks. #IconGarth"

Brooks went on to thank his “three daughters” and “the love of my life” Trisha Yearwood saying “I will love you for all my time on this planet,” as he gushed. “Country Radio, you gave me this! To all those people who fill those stands, thank you! Thank you for my life!” As the honor is bestowed on Brooks, here what we need to know about the singing star. 

Who is Troyal Garth Brooks?

Born in 1962, Garth Brooks is best known for the fusion of rock and pop elements into the country genre. The singer has tasted great success as a country music icon with his single and album charts, multi-platinum recordings and record-breaking live performances in the world of pop. 

In February 2020, the best-selling American solo artist of all time shared snippets of his personal life in the biographical documentary, 'Garth Brooks: The Road I'm On'. The documentary chronicles Brooks’ childhood, his rise to fame, and the personal struggles that would accompany his becoming, on a global scale. It reveals that Brook’s mother had been a singer signed to Capitol Records, who volunteered to give up her burgeoning career to raise her kids. The documentary reveals how talented Garth was, even at a young age, and when he went to Oklahoma State University in Stillwater where he often played the dive bars and honky-tonks in town and started to gain fame. 

In January this year, Billboard announced that Garth Brooks was the first artist to make it on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart in the '80s, '90s, '00s, '10s, and now '20s. Garth has also created his meticulously-curated vinyl package, ‘LEGACY’. This path-breaking collection includes his albums like ‘No Fence’s, ‘The Chase’, ‘In Pieces’, ‘Fresh Horses’, and ‘Triple Live’ and more. Previously, we compiled a list of his most famous songs that have moved people from all walks of life. The country star is the seven-time CMA Entertainer of the Year, a first for any artist. Moreover, Brooks is the first and only artist in history to receive nine Diamond Awards. 

Now as he was bestowed with honor at the Billboard Awards, Internet is still boggled about who Garth Brooks was. As a result, his huge fandom slammed the unversed people who do not know Brook’s fame and work. Some even dragged in K-Pop boy band BTS. A user who didn't know who was Brooks wrote, “Garth Brooks who?” Another wrote, “I’m sorry but genuinely ..... who the f**k is Garth Brooks ? and don’t bring BTS into this when BTS has broken countless records and won tons of awards when ....... like i said, who the f**k is Garth Brooks?” Two fan-voted awards at Billboards were handed out, one to Harry Styles for winning the Billboard chart achievement award and the other to BTS for winning the top social artist award. However, fans of Brooks tweeted dragging in K-pop band BTS, “People who don’t know who Garth Brooks is are akin to me not knowing who BTS is. I don’t know who BTS is. A band I think.”

Another fan concurred, “If you don't know who Garth Brooks is, you're too young and uncultured to be on the Internet. And that's that! #GOAT.” A user wrote in praise of Brooks, “How in the hell is there so many people on Twitter that have NEVER heard of Garth Brooks? He’s an ICON! They mentioned all of his enormous achievements and there’s still people who are like “don’t you have to be recognizable to get the Icon award” just because you obviously.”