Latest news with #GarthBrooks
Irish Times
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Times
Zach Bryan: Who is he and why is he so popular in Ireland?
Few artists in the history of music and in the space of two years can go from playing in front of 1,200 people to three sold-out concerts in front of 180,000 people. Zach Bryan has filled the gap for a new generation of Irish music fans yearning for American singer-songwriters and storytellers in the same milieu as Bruce Springsteen and Garth Brooks . Both Springsteen and Brooks have been successfully promoted by Peter Aiken of Aiken Promotions who would not have gone to such lengths to book a venue as big as the Phoenix Park for Bryan without knowing his audience. The three concerts on Friday, Saturday and Sunday night are the first in the Phoenix Park since 2018. READ MORE Bryan last played here in April 2023 in front of 1,200 people in the Helix. Aiken recalled a meltdown online with some 10,000 fans trying to purchase tickets. Since then, aside from Taylor Swift with 220,000 monthly listeners, Bryan has become the most streamed artist on Irish Spotify. Like Brooks, Bryan is from Oklahoma and sings songs about heartbreak and loss. Despite his 29 years, he has had a lot of the tragedy in his young life – his mother died in 2016 having struggled with alcoholism for much of her life. Bryan spent eight years in the US navy before releasing his first album in 2019. It is only since quitting the navy four years ago that he has become a huge star Bryan is the biggest artist that a lot of Irish people have never heard of. As with Brooks, there is a town and country divide. He's hardly off regional radio and his biggest fan base is, unsurprisingly, in the northern and western parts of the country. Just 10 per cent of tickets to his concerts were bought in Dublin. When the gigs were first announced, locals in the vicinity of the Phoenix Park didn't know if he was a rapper or a heavy metaller, Aiken recalled. [ Zach Bryan at Phoenix Park: Stage times, set list, weather and more Opens in new window ] Bryan is commonly referred to as a country artist, but he doesn't like being pigeonholed in that territory. 'He's come from nowhere. His songs are about heartbreak and loss and all the things that people don't like talking about any more,' said Aiken. 'Maybe [those] in Dublin aren't aware of him, but people outside Dublin are very well aware of him. 'He's the real deal. He's not country per se but he's very Springsteen. He's a great storyteller and a very dynamic performer – he has a lot of charisma. 'When you have 160,000 people here, they're going to know the words to every song; it's going to be a very unique, special atmosphere.' [ Zach Bryan: the country music star who has sold out summer concerts at the Phoenix Park Opens in new window ] The weather is set to be fair for the weekend and no rain is forecast. Fans will need to stock up on water and sunscreen with temperatures reaching 25 degrees on Sunday. For most fans it will be a 45 minute walk from the Parkgate entrance of the Phoenix Park to the concert location. Gates will open at 5pm and the support acts, Turnpike Troubadours and Noeline Hofmann, will kick things off from 6pm.
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Garth Brooks' Daughter Shares Bold Statement Amid His Legal Troubles
Garth Brooks' Daughter Shares Bold Statement Amid His Legal Troubles originally appeared on Parade. As country singer faces legal issues following sexual assault allegations that came out late last year, his youngest daughter,, shared a strong statement about her professional association with her father. The 28-year-old recently sat down for a conversation with for the Bobbycast podcast to talk about her life, during which she made it clear how she wants to be separate from her father when it comes to forging her music career. 🎬 In a clip shared on the podcast's Instagram page, Allie said, "I'm just asking, more so the industry, to help me out, to not put me in that box...I'm not gonna fit in that box. They're not gonna like me in there." "I don't represent [Garth Brooks] at all," she declared. "So it's just always been really tough when it's like, 'Garth Brooks' daughter, Allie Colleen, doing this...' Now, all of a sudden, everyone thinks 'Friends in Low Places' is gonna be in my set, and it's not." Luckily for Allie, quite a few of her fans in the comments didn't even know her relation to the country star, with one writing, "Good news I didn't know that and she's amazing." Another said, "Been following her a few years, zero clue she was Garth's daughter! Wild!" Allie's bold words about Brooks come not long after the 63-year-old was accused of sexual assault and battery by a former employee. Brooks went on to counter-sue, claiming extortion and defamation. The lawsuits are still Brooks' Daughter Shares Bold Statement Amid His Legal Troubles first appeared on Parade on Jun 17, 2025 This story was originally reported by Parade on Jun 17, 2025, where it first appeared.
Irish Independent
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Independent
Who is Zach Bryan? Everything you need to know about the American country music star ahead of his Phoenix Park gigs
If you haven't heard of him yet, you will – the 28-year-old, who has collaborated with Bruce Springsteen and John Mayer, is set to nab fellow Oklahoman Garth Brooks's crown as our top country music crooner He was born in Okinawa, raised in Oklahoma and this month (June 20, 21, 22) he will play three huge gigs at Dublin's Phoenix Park to 180,000 people – which are on their way to being completely sold out. The question is, who the hell is Zach Bryan? Ireland's love affair with country music has been long-established and well-documented. We even have our own sub-genre, Country and Irish (aka Culchie and Western), will don a fluffy cowboy hat at the earliest opportunity, flock to the Country to Country (C2C) festival in our droves when it hits Irish shores every year, and have rolled out the red carpet for Garth Brooks on numerous occasions across the decades – even after the unforgettable fiasco that was GarthGate.
Irish Independent
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- Irish Independent
US tourists flock to Dublin for US country music star Zach Bryan's gigs amid surge in North American visitors
The Oklahoma singer-songwriter will play three concerts at Dublin's Phoenix Park from June 20-22 with a predicted attendance of over 180,000. The gigs have delivered bumper bookings for Dublin hotels while pubs and restaurants are set to enjoy a surge in business over the next 10 days. It is predicted that up to 10,000 US fans will visit Ireland, with the concerts a key reason for their holiday here. Dublin tourism will savour its biggest boost since the Garth Brooks concerts of 2022 as, unlike rock acts such as Bruce Springsteen, Taylor Swift and Coldplay, the majority of ticket sales for country artists are outside the capital region. Only 12pc of ticket sales for the Bryan concerts were in the Dublin area – with huge ticket demand in Connacht, Ulster, the UK and North America. Bryan has enjoyed a stratospheric rise to stardom and will play here just two years after performing to 1,900 fans at The Helix in Dublin. The concerts take place as Ireland is savouring a big recovery in US tourist numbers. Latest figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) revealed that one in five foreign holidaymakers who visited Ireland in April were from the US. That represented a significant increase in North American visitor numbers compared with March. While the figure (18pc) was down 1pc compared with the same period last year, it represented an 8pc hike compared with the number of US holidaymakers recorded in April 2023. The UK remains Ireland's biggest tourism market with four in every 10 visitors coming from England, Scotland or Wales. The Irish Tourism Industry Confederation (ITIC) said the sector faces multiple challenges ranging from constrained airline seat capacity, global instability, the potential impact of Donald Trump's 'America First' strategy and economic issues on core visitor markets including the UK and Germany. Irish tourism is expected to deliver revenue growth of between 5pc and 7pc, but growth in the overall number of visitors is expected to slip to its lowest rate for years. The European Travel Commission (ETA) has predicted average tourism growth across the 27 member states will exceed 8pc. ADVERTISEMENT However, the ITIC predicted that Ireland will fall behind the EU average – potentially peaking at 5pc growth. Tourism Ireland estimated that the economy received a €7bn boost from tourism last year. Over 300,000 jobs are supported by overseas tourism, with Tourism Ireland aiming to boost the value of the sector to €9bn by 2030. Tourism revenue growth has been boosted by the fact that inflation has eased and Ireland will be able to offer better value for money in accommodation terms thanks to over 7,000 new hotel rooms being delivered by the construction sector. A significant number of hotel and guest house rooms will also be returned to tourism use as refugees are allocated alternative accommodation. Leading hoteliers said 2024 was a good year and this season was expected to deliver further growth. InterContinental Dublin general manager Nicky Logue said US business was strong while UK trade was down on previous years. 'Last year was a very strong year and, bar any great shocks, I predict the same in 2025, albeit with a lot of pressure on the bottom line with increasing costs of doing business,' Mr Logue said. 'Thankfully we performed well year-on-year due to strong group business from the US in particular and rugby. Ireland and Slovenia are the only two European countries where airline seat capacity will decline in 2025 'Leisure business remains strong from the US, but the UK market is definitely not as strong as it has been in years gone by. Corporate business remains challenging with people travelling less and many still working from home a couple of days a week.' Tourism groups said the main 'handbrake on growth' is the passenger cap at Dublin Airport. Ireland and Slovenia are the only two European countries where airline seat capacity will decline in 2025. In Ireland, seat capacity will fall by 3.3pc. That contrasts with countries like the UK (+3.9pc), France (7.1pc), Spain (+8.1pc), Italy (+6.1pc) and Denmark (+8.3pc). An ITIC spokesperson said: 'With 70pc of the Irish tourism economy dependent on international visitation, it is vital that the main gateway into the country has headroom to grow. 'Although there is a court ruling to put a 'stay' on the cap for next summer, the issue of restrictions at Dublin growth is as pertinent as ever. 'This manifested itself last winter in air access into the country being down 3pc – the only top-20 European destination showing a decline. 'Growth at Shannon and Cork Airports must be facilitated, but this will not compensate for lost business at Dublin.' From January 1 to October 31 last year, Ireland welcomed 5.79 million visitors which was an 8pc increase compared with the same period in 2023. Those visitors spent €5.38bn, an increase of 15pc compared with the same period in 2023. However, Ireland experienced a 5pc decline last October in overseas visitor numbers compared to the previous year – a decline largely triggered by a fall in UK visitors.
Wall Street Journal
04-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Wall Street Journal
‘Paper Flowers' by Tim O'Brien and Jan Fabricius Review: Romance and Reflections
In a career of over 50 years as a music maker, Tim O'Brien has won recognition, praise and awards in folk music, bluegrass, country and roots rock as a multi-instrumentalist, vocalist and songwriter. He was a founder of the progressive bluegrass band Hot Rize in the 1970s, playing fiddle and mandolin, and of the comical honky-tonk and Western-swing offshoot Red Knuckles and the Trailblazers. (Same band members, different getups.) He won the 2005 Grammy Award for Best Traditional Folk Album for the Irish-music-saluting 'Fiddler's Green,' and shared in the 2014 Best Bluegrass Album Grammy as a member of the Flatt & Scruggs-saluting Earls of Leicester. His 2017 album, 'Where the River Meets the Road,' celebrated the music of his native West Virginia; the state's Music Hall of Fame had inducted him by 2013. His songs have been recorded by everyone from Garth Brooks to Alison Krauss, and he's also toured and recorded solo and in folk duets with his sister, Mollie, and with Darrell Scott. For the past decade, he's been performing live with his wife, singer and mandolinist Jan Fabricius, and written songs with her, but they'd not gotten around to recording together until now, with their charming collaborative album 'Paper Flowers' (Howdy Skies, June 6).
