Garth Brooks Inks Exclusive Streaming Deal With Amazon Music
Country music star Garth Brooks is Amazon’s latest weapon in the music-streaming wars.
The e-commerce giant announced an exclusive deal with Brooks, the the best-selling solo artist in U.S. history, to stream several albums on Amazon Music Unlimited, the subscription service it launched last week.
Starting Wednesday, Amazon Music Unlimited subscribers can stream his latest single, “Baby, Let’s Lay Down and Dance,” from his upcoming new studio album “Gunslinger.” Also exclusively streaming on Amazon are Brooks’ “The Ultimate Hits” and “Double Live,” which includes “Friends in Low Places,” “The Dance,” “Papa Loved Mama,” “Callin’ Baton Rouge,” “Unanswered Prayers,” “The River,” “Ain’t Goin’ Down (‘Til the Sun Comes Up),” “Two Pina Coladas,” “Shameless,” and “The Thunder Rolls.” All songs on “Double Live” will also be available on Prime Music.
Amazon Music Unlimited will add more music from Brooks later this year, including his upcoming new holiday album “Christmas Together” with his wife and country star Trisha Yearwood and “Gunslinger,” the artist’s first album since 2014.
“It is a joy to work with a company that is all about the customer when it comes to service, and all about the music and its creators when it comes to the music,” Brooks said in a statement.
Under the pact, Amazon Music Unlimited also will be the official sponsor of Brooks’ current tour, which will go worldwide in 2017.
Amazon’s on-demand music streaming service undercuts the $10-per-month pricing of rivals Spotify and Apple Music: Amazon Music Unlimited costs $7.99 per month for Prime members, while non-Prime users can sign up for $9.99 per month. In addition, Amazon offers a special tier for consumers who only want to access their music subscription on the Amazon Echo speaker for just $3.99 a month.
With the Brooks deal, Amazon has locked up streaming rights to a popular artist’s music — adopting a strategy used by Apple Music and Jay Z’s Tidal streaming service. In August, Frank Ocean’s new visual album “Blonde” appeared exclusively on Apple Music, while Beyoncé earlier this year released her “Lemonade” visual album on Tidal.
Brooks has received seven Diamond awards from the RIAA for albums that have sold more than 10 million units each, a feat only he can claim. Brooks has been inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame, Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame, and the International Songwriters Hall of Fame in New York, and he also just received his 11th nomination for entertainer of the year from the CMA Awards.
Earlier this summer, Brooks signed with WME for representation in all areas, including music, film, television, books and endorsements. Brooks continues to be managed by Bob Doyle & Associates.
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