Garth Brooks on Sexual Assault Lawsuit: 'This Thing Is On'

Singer, who denied allegations, suggested he was prepared for a yearslong legal battle

It’s business as usual for Garth Brooks, who was sued last week for sexual assault. On the Monday edition of his Facebook Live show, Inside Studio G, the country artist, who denied the allegations, indicated he would be in it for the long haul with a legal battle, which he described as the “elephant in the room.”

“This thing is on; it’s gonna happen,” he said, according to A Taste of Country. “People are telling me it could be up to two years. So my suggestion is, we all take a deep breath, just kinda settle in and let’s hold hands and take a trip together. Because it is something that we cannot talk about. That’s all we can say about it.” He then switched topics to his charity work and praising the commitment his wife, Trisha Yearwood, has shown for their charity work.

The lawsuit, filed by “Jane Roe,” claimed Brooks assaulted her multiple times in 2019 when she was employed as his hair and makeup artist. The lawsuit included allegations that Brooks forced her to touch his genitals and that he trapped her in a hotel room for one assault.

“For the last two months, I have been hassled to no end with threats, lies, and tragic tales of what my future would be if I did not write a check for many millions of dollars,” Brooks told Rolling Stone in a statement. “It has been like having a loaded gun waved in my face.” He also issued another statement in which he said, “I trust the system, I do not fear the truth, and I am not the man they have painted me to be.”

“We are confident that Brooks will be held accountable for his actions,” lawyers Douglas H. Wigdor, Jeanne M. Christensen, and Hayley Baker said in a statement. “We applaud our client’s courage in moving forward with her complaint against Garth Brooks. The complaint filed today demonstrates that sexual predators exist not only in corporate America, Hollywood, and in the rap and rock & roll industries but also in the world of country music.”