The last time Garth Brooks did six shows in Jacksonville, Veterans Memorial Arena was a Coliseum, people still bought their music in CD form and Mark Zuckerberg was in middle school.
“Jacksonville is the home of the first two-a-day ever for us,” Brooks said at a press conference Friday, joking with a nearby reporter “before you were born.”
That’s “two-a-day,” as in six concerts in four days.
Since then, the city of Jacksonville has grown, Brooks has retired, remarried and returned, and the advent of social media has provided a unique set of new problems on the road.
“You can be honest and sincere and say, ‘Oh my God. I haven’t had this much fun in my life. I’m having a great night.’ You say that again somewhere and it could be the truth but because they saw it on Youtube, it’s like, ‘Oh, no he says that every place he goes,’” Brooks said.
But long-time fans can expect some things to remain the same as the legendary country rocker kicks off his six-night engagement in Jacksonville Friday.
The Garth Brooks World Tour with wife Trisha Yearwood begins at 7:30 at Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena. Brooks was at the arena Friday afternoon to discuss the tour and memories of his first time performing in Jacksonville.
“There were people tailgating and there were people like a sporting event and they came ready... so that’s what I remember about this place,” he said.
This time, he’ll be performing Oct. 10-12 and Oct. 16-18. And fans can expect to hear a few favorites like “Friends in Low Places” and “We Shall Be Free.”
Brooks said they can also expect some songs off his newest album set to release Nov. 11.
Tickets for all six shows are still available for purchase at www.ticketmaster.com.
You can follow Rhema Thompson on Twitter @RhemaThompson.
