Country singer Garth Brooks has been accused of sexual assault by a former hair and makeup artist who worked for his family.
The 27-page lawsuit was filed on Thursday on behalf of “Jane Roe,” who claims the incidents occurred over several years. Roe said one of the alleged incidents included Brooks forcing her to touch his erect penis while she was styling his hair. The suit also includes details of Brooks allegedly raping her in a Los Angeles hotel room in 2019 while she was helping him get ready for a Grammy tribute, per NPR.
Roe accused Brooks of repeatedly exposing his genitals and buttocks to her, talking about sex, sharing sexual fantasies, and sending sexually explicit text messages, per Today. The country singer also stands accused of “repeated remarks” about “having a threesome” with his wife, singer Tricia Yearwood.
The plaintiff said she had initially worked for Yearwood beginning in 1999 and started working for Brooks beginning in 2017.
Roe’s legal team noted that the “Friends in Low Places” singer filed a preemptive lawsuit anonymously in September, saying he was being extorted for money from a former employee because he had refused to give her a raise or pay for health insurance.
Brooks has denied the allegations. A statement from his legal team said, “(Roe’s) false allegations and her threats to wrongfully assassinate (Brooks’) character through the public airing of such revulsive and untrue allegations have caused (Brooks) emotional distress including anxiety and fear for himself and his family.”
It continues, “(Roe’s) attempted extortion of (Brooks) for millions of dollars through such untrue, lewd allegations constitutes intentional, outrageous conduct that was intended to and did in fact cause (Brooks) serious mental injury, amounting to an intentional infliction of emotional distress.”
“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 said in the statement. “ It has been like having a loaded gun waved in my face. Hush money, no matter how much or how little, is still hush money. In my mind, that means I am admitting to behavior I am incapable of — ugly acts no human should ever do to another.”
“We filed suit against this person nearly a month ago to speak out against extortion and defamation of character. We filed it anonymously for the sake of families on both sides, ” he added.
“I want to play music tonight. I want to continue our good deeds going forward. It breaks my heart these wonderful things are in question now,” the country singer’s statement concludes. “I trust the system, I do not fear the truth, and I am not the man they have painted me to be.”
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Roe announced her intention to move forward with a jury trial. She is seeking monetary and punitive damages plus attorney’s fees.
“We applaud our client’s courage in moving forward with her complaint against Garth Brooks,” Roe’s legal team wrote in a statement. “The complaint filed today demonstrates that sexual predators exist not only in corporate America, Hollywood and in the rap and rock and roll industries but also in the world of country music.”
“We are confident that Brooks will be held accountable for his actions and his efforts to silence our client through the filing of a preemptive complaint in Mississippi was nothing other than an act of desperation and attempted intimidation,” the statement says. “We encourage others who may have been victimized to contact us as no survivor should suffer in silence.”
Brooks performed in Las Vegas on Thursday night just after the news broke. He addressed the drama with an Instagram post, writing in the caption, “If there was ever a night that I really needed this, TONIGHT was that night! Thank you for my life!!!!!”