Garth Brooks feels ‘pressured to perform’ despite legal issues

Garth Brooks is more stressed than ever about legal problems after his lawyer lost an appeal to throw out the rape case. However, there is no time for him to stew or sulk as he faces a heavy schedule in 2025 on top of his ongoing personal problems.

“Garth continues to protest (that the allegations) don’t matter, but he’s been made to suffer. He can’t believe the judge ruled against him,” a source exclusively tells In contact. “He has maintained from the start that it is a joke of a trial and he is determined to prove his innocence in the long run.”

The insider says the “Friends in Low Places” singer, 62, “is sticking by (his wife) Trish (Yearwood,) and listens to his lawyers,” but the stress of the case is “taking its toll” on him.

“His pain is not going away,” the source continues. “On top of that, he feels the pressure to perform for the fans. In an ideal world he would take a break, but he has to be professional and keep it together. It’s a lot to take in at once. He’s coming from the scene and the next day he is in meetings with his lawyer. It has been a big blow to him.”

Although the allegations “still hang over him like a dark cloud,” the insider says the Grammy winner doesn’t have much downtime to make up.

“He has to go on the road and perform for fans and deal with lawyers while trying to stay as positive as possible during this hell of a trial,” the source reveals. “Even if he wins the case, he must fear that the stigma will follow him for the rest of his life.”

In October 2024, a woman listed as “Jane Roe” in court documents filed a lawsuit against Garth, accusing him of sexual assault and battery. The woman previously claimed to have worked for the country star as a hair and makeup artist and alleged that she was raped by Garth in 2019.

In the court documents seen by In contactJane also claimed that Garth repeatedly exposed his genitals and buttocks to her, changed his clothes while in her presence and sent her sexually explicit texts. She also claimed that in 2019 she was at Garth’s home and that he left the shower while he was naked and “grabbed her hands and forced them” on his genitals while saying sexually explicit and vulgar phrases.

Garth had previously denied all of Jane’s claims and filed his own lawsuit against her in an attempt to prevent her from speaking publicly about the matter.

“(Jane’s) allegations are not true. However, (Jane) is well aware of the significant, irreparable damage such false allegations would do to (Garth’s) well-deserved reputation as a decent and caring person, along with the inevitable harm to his family and the irreparable damage to his career and livelihood that would result if she followed through on her threat to ‘publicly file’ her fabricated lawsuit,” the lawsuit read.

In December 2024, an Austin, Texas, news media reported that “amid allegations of misconduct, Brooks appeared to have been removed from Austin City Limits’ 50th anniversary program.” However, an executive producer for the event said that was not true.

“Garth Brooks Austin City Limits Hall of Fame Special to Air in Spring 2025 as Intended,” Terry Lickona told My San Antonio in an article published on December 13, 2024. “Garth had asked us to delay the broadcast until after his stay in Vegas; the specific broadcast date will be announced in the near future.”

Garth’s residency in Vegas is scheduled to continue through March 9.