- LET ME UNDERSTAND THIS RIGHT.
YOU STOPPED--
LOOK AT THAT.
- THAT'S ME, I THINK.
- NOW--IS THAT YOU?
THAT'S HOW YOU SLEEP AT NIGHT?
- [laughing] YES. - YOU WEAR THAT?
- THAT IS HOW I SLEEP? - WITHOUT YOUR HAT.
SO YOU KIND OF STEPPED AWAY FROM MUSIC
AND DEVOTED ALL YOUR TIME TO RAISING YOUR GIRLS, RIGHT?
- TO TRYING TO KEEP UP WITH THEM, YES.
- UH-HUH.
- AND HOW OLD ARE THEY NOW?
- THEY'RE 21, 19, AND 17.
THE LAST BABY IS A SENIOR IN HIGH SCHOOL.
- SO IS SHE THE ONLY ONE LEFT IN THE HOUSE?
- YES, SHE IS.
WELL, SHE'S NOT REALLY AT THE HOUSE THAT MUCH.
SHE'S TRYING EVERY AFTER SCHOOL ACTIVITY SHE CAN
TO KEEP FROM COMING HOME.
- UH-HUH.
- SO, YEAH, FROM THREE TO TWO--
THESE ARE KIND OF THE BITTERSWEET YEARS.
FROM THREE TO TWO, YOU REALLY DIDN'T--
THE HOUSE DIDN'T GET THAT QUIET.
- MM-HMM.
- BUT FROM TWO TO ONE, TURNED INTO A MORGUE.
- IT'S QUIET. - IT'S JUST QUIET.
SO THAT'S WHY I LOVE HOLIDAYS,
'CAUSE FOR THREE MINUTES,
YOU GET THEM BACK AT THE SAME TABLE
AND GET TO LOVE ON 'EM, SWEET ON 'EM.
- YEAH, WELL, YOU'RE A GREAT DAD.
I MEAN, THE FACT THAT YOU ACTUALLY WALKED AWAY FROM--
YOU'RE SUCH AN AMAZING ENTERTAINER--
TO STAY HOME AND RAISE YOUR KIDS.
AND THAT'S INCREDIBLE, REALLY.
- THAT'S VERY SWEET. THEY...
[cheers and applause]
I APPRECIATE THAT.
BUT THE TRUTH IS, THAT'S A GIFT FROM GOD AND THE PEOPLE,
'CAUSE I THINK IF EVERYBODY WAS ALLOWED THAT LUXURY,
I THINK 99% OF US PARENTS WOULD TAKE IT.
AND I REALLY THOUGHT STAYING HOME EVERY DAY
IT WOULDN'T FLY BY SO FAST,
BUT IT STILL JUST FLEW BY.
I GUESS MAYBE BECAUSE THEY'RE GIRLS OR SOMETHING,
BUT THEY JUST GROW UP SO FAST.
- AND ARE THEY MUSICAL?
DOES ANYBODY WANT TO BE IN THE BUSINESS?
- THE FIRST TWO LOVED LISTENING TO THE RADIO,
AND THEN THE BABY ACTUALLY HAS BEEN BITTEN BY THE BUG,
SO SHE LOVES TO PLAY AND SING.
AND SHE'S GOT THE GIFT,
SO WE'LL SEE WHAT EACH ONE OF THEM WANTS TO DO.
THEY'RE SO YOUNG IN THEIR LIFE,
THEY'RE GONNA CHANGE THEIR MIND 1,000 TIMES.
- I THINK IT WOULD BE COOL TO HAVE YOUR DAD AS GARTH BROOKS
AND IT WOULD BE HARD
BECAUSE YOU'RE GONNA GET COMPARED,
AND SO IT'S A ROUGH THING FOR HER, I WOULD IMAGINE.
- YEAH, I DON'T KNOW.
FOR ONE, SHE CAN RUN LAPS AROUND ME WHEN IT COMES TO TALENT.
SHE'S SO FAR AHEAD OF ANYWHERE WHERE I WAS TO HER AGE.
SO I DON'T KNOW IF SHE'S GONNA BE COMPARED TO ME.
I WOULD THINK GROWING UP IN A HOUSE
WITH TRISHA YEARWOOD WOULD BE KIND OF TOUGH...
- YEAH, THAT'S TRUE.
- 'CAUSE THERE'S ONE OF THE GREATEST FEMALE SINGERS EVER.
- YEAH, THAT IS TRUE.
[applause]
AND YOU AND TRISHA HAVE BEEN FRIENDS
FOR A LONG, LONG TIME, RIGHT?
- RIGHT.
- AND THEN AFTER-- HOW MANY YEARS WAS IT
BEFORE YOU ACTUALLY GOT TOGETHER ROMANTICALLY?
- WE MET IN '87.
AND WE--SANDY AND I GOT DIVORCED IN 2000,
AND ME AND MS. YEARWOOD GOT MARRIED IN 2005.
- MM-HMM.
AND HOW IS THAT TO BE FRIENDS WITH SOMEBODY FOR THAT LONG,
AND THEN WHAT IS IT-- WAS IT, LIKE, A GRADUAL THING,
OR WAS IT ALL OF A SUDDEN ONE DAY YOU'RE LIKE,
"WAIT A MINUTE"?
- YOU REALLY WANT TO GET INTO THIS?
- I DO. I REALLY DO.
- SERIOUSLY. - YEAH, WHY NOT?
- ALL RIGHT.
HERE'S THE STRANGE THING.
[chuckles]
CAN'T BELIEVE WE'RE REALLY GONNA DO THIS.
YOU MEET SOMEBODY--
KIP BLAZE INTRODUCED ME AND MS. YEARWOOD.
- MM-HMM.
- AND HE GOES, "I KNEW YOU WERE GONNA LIKE HER."
WHEN SHE LEFT, HE GOES, "WHAT DO YOU THINK?"
AND I SAID, "WELL, IT'S STRANGE,
'CAUSE I FELT THAT FEELING LIKE WHEN YOU JUST MEET YOUR WIFE."
BUT I'D BEEN MARRIED FOR 13 MONTHS.
AND SO YOU BEING MARRIED, IT'S GOT TO BE RIGHT.
YOU KNOW, THIS IS WHO YOU WENT TO COLLEGE WITH.
- YEAH.
- AND YOU WERE MARRIED IN FRONT OF GOD
AND YOUR FAMILY AND EVERYTHING,
AND YOU KEEP HACKING, YOU WORK,
AND YOU WORK AND YOU WORK.
AND THEN COMES THAT TIME WHERE
YOU'RE LOOKING AT THE REST OF YOUR LIFE, GOING,
HOW DO YOU WANT TO LIVE IT?
AND THIS WAS SOMEBODY THAT I ALWAYS ENJOYED BEING AROUND,
AND WE HAD A LOT MORE IN COMMON
THAN I EVER DREAMED WE DID.
AND SO WE STARTED SEEING EACH OTHER
AFTER--AFTER THE DIVORCE.
WE CAME OFF TOUR,
SO WE'D KNOWN EACH OTHER MUSIC-WISE.
- YEAH.
- BUT WE GOT TO SEE EACH OTHER AS PEOPLE.
AND I GOT TO TELL YOU,
IF YOU LIKE HER AND DON'T KNOW HER,
IF YOU LOVE HER AND DON'T KNOW HER,
YOU'RE GONNA WORSHIP HER.
SHE'S THE REAL DEAL.
- THAT'S BEAUTIFUL.
- MS. YEARWOOD AND MYSELF AND SANDY
HAVE PLEDGED THAT WE'RE GONNA TAKE THESE KIDS
ALL THE WAY TO COLLEGE,
AND THEN ONCE THE KIDS GO OFF TO COLLEGE,
THEN WE'VE GOT OUR OWN THING TO DO,
AND THE KIDS KIND OF--
YOU BECOME THAT PARENT
FROM HAVING KIDS IN SCHOOL TO HAVING KIDS IN COLLEGE,
WHICH, THEY REALLY DON'T CALL YOU VERY MUCH,
AND IF THEY DO, IT'S USUALLY
FOR MONEY OR SOMETHING, YOU KNOW, AT THAT POINT.
SO WE KNOW WE'VE GOT OUR LIFE AHEAD OF US NOW,
AND IT'S OUR CHOICE, WHATEVER IT IS WE'RE GONNA DO,
BUT WE'VE GOT ONE FINAL JOB TO DO,
AND THAT'S GET THIS BABY THROUGH HIGH SCHOOL.
- WOW. WELL, THAT'S AMAZING.
AND THAT'S WHAT IT SHOULD BE.
I MEAN, IT'S ALL ABOUT THE KIDS.
AND THE FACT THAT YOU REMAIN FRIENDS
AND DEVOTED TO THE MOST IMPORTANT TASK,
WHICH IS MAKING SURE THEY'RE HEALTHY
AND HAPPY AND SAFE.
AND IT REALLY IS.
I BELIEVE THAT.
I BELIEVE WHEN YOU MEET SOMEONE,
YOUR SOUL KNOWS RIGHT AWAY.
AND THE FACT THAT YOU FOUGHT THAT
AND THE FACT THAT YOU TRIED TO DO THE RIGHT THING
IS VERY ADMIRABLE OF YOU.
BUT I'M GLAD YOU GOT TO BE WITH THE PERSON
THAT YOUR SOUL WANTS TO BE WITH.
- WELL, I GOT TO TELL YOU, THIS IS--
I NEVER KNEW IT COULD BE LIKE THIS.
I NEVER KNEW THAT EVERY DAY YOU COULD WAKE UP
AND FEEL LIKE THIS.
AND I HAVE GOD AND I HAVE MS. YEARWOOD TO THANK FOR THAT.
THAT'S VERY SWEET.
- YOU DESERVE IT. YOU'RE AN AMAZING GUY.