Garth Brooks cancels rest of tour; Vegas one of 4 outings

Las Vegas concert-goers who caught Garth Brooks’ “Stadium Tour” debut in July 10 in Las Vegas likely had no idea how rare a performance that would be.

Brooks has effectively unplugged the tour. The country superstar announced Wednesday that his next five tour dates would be spiked, as COVID cases have surged across the country.

“In July, I sincerely thought the pandemic was falling behind us,” said Brooks, who appeared at Allegiant Stadium in July, the first country artist to ever play the venue. “Now, watching this new wave, I realize we are still in the fight and I must do my part.”

Brooks restarted his pandemic-delayed tour in Vegas. His show at Allegiant Stadium quickly sold out, with an estimated 68,000 fans on hand. The “Stadium Tour,” relaunched after being shut down after Brooks played Ford Field in Detroit on Feb. 22, 2020. He played four shows in the reopening.

Brooks had been set to perform Paul Brown Stadium in Cincinnati on Sept. 18; Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte on Sept. 25; M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore on Oct. 2; Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts, on Oct. 9; and Nissan Stadium in Nashville. That show had not been rescheduled after it was wiped out by a thunderstorm Aug. 2.

Brooks’ last tour date was Saturday night in Lincoln, Nebraska, with about 90,000 fans in attendance. His scheduled Sept. 4 date at Seattle’s Lumen Field never did go onsale, as he and his team began reviewing options for the tour on Aug. 3.

“The joy I have seen in everyone’s faces as live music returns has been more than worth our constant diligence to maintain safety protocols not only for the fans, but for our band, the crew and the hard working staff in these stadiums,” Brooks’ statement continued. “Their dedication to safety for the people who fill those seats has been a miracle to watch and a blessing to receive. I am truly grateful.”

Brooks said he hoped he could “start over when this wave seems to be behind us,” possibly as soon as this fall or winter. Ticketmaster is automatically refunding about 350,000 tickets for the dropped shows. No action is required to obtain a refund..

John Katsilometes’ column runs daily in the A section. His “PodKats!” podcast can be found at reviewjournal.com/podcasts. Contact him at jkatsilometes@reviewjournal.com. Follow @johnnykats on Twitter, @JohnnyKats1 on Instagram.