Garth Brooks is accused of sexual harassment and assault by former hair and makeup artist

A new lawsuit filed in California state court alleges country music star Garth Brooks sexually assaulted and abused a hair and makeup artist who worked for him.

The lawsuit, filed on October 3, 2023, by a “Jane Roe” alleges that the incidents occurred over several years while Roe worked for Brooks.

In the 27-page lawsuit, Roe makes several allegations against the country singer. She claims Brooks forced her to touch his erect penis in 2019 while she was at his home to style his hair. Roe claims Brooks took her to Los Angeles to style him for an event that same year and then raped her in a hotel room.

Roe’s lawsuit also accuses Brooks of repeatedly exposing his genitals and buttocks to her, talking about sex, sharing sexual fantasies and sending sexually explicit text messages.

The lawsuit goes on to say that Brooks attempted to cover up his alleged harassment of Roe, even going so far as to secretly take her phone and delete explicit text messages he had sent her.

Brooks did not respond to TODAY.com’s request for comment.

The lawsuit states that Roe initially worked for Brooks’ wife Trisha Yearwood starting in 1999 and only began working for Brooks himself in 2017. Roe moved to Mississippi in 2021, the lawsuit says.

In a statement, Roe’s legal team – Douglas H. Wigdor, Jeanne M. Christensen and Hayley Baker – said Brooks tried to “silence” Roe with a preemptive lawsuit in Mississippi.

The complaint, filed in Mississippi on September 13, 2024, was filed by a “John Doe,” a “celebrity and public figure residing in Tennessee.” In the filing, Doe alleged that Roe was lying to extort money from him and damage his reputation. The Mississippi complaint also alleged that Roe threatened to file her complaint in California simply because Doe refused to give her a raise and pay for health insurance.

“(Roe’s) false accusations and her threats to unlawfully assassinate (Doe’s) character by publicly disseminating such repugnant and untrue allegations have caused (Doe) emotional distress, including fear and anxiety for himself and his family,” the statement said Mississippi Statement of Claim. “(Roe’s) attempt to extort (Doe) out of millions of dollars through such untrue, offensive allegations constitutes intentional, outrageous conduct that was intended to, and did, cause (Doe) severe psychological harm, amounting to intentional emotional infliction equals stress.” “

TODAY.com was unable to confirm with Brooks’ team that the country singer in the Mississippi file is John Doe. Doe’s lawsuit seeks damages, “a declaratory judgment that the defendant’s allegations of sexual misconduct against him are untrue,” an injunction to stop Roe from filing her lawsuit, and a jury trial.

Roe’s lawsuit seeks damages and a jury trial.

“We applaud our client’s courage in moving forward with her complaint against Garth Brooks,” Roe’s legal team wrote in a statement. “The complaint filed today shows that sexual predators exist not only in corporate America, Hollywood, and the rap and rock and roll industries, but also in the world of country music.”

“We are confident that Brooks will be held accountable for his actions and that his efforts to silence our client by filing a preemptive lawsuit in Mississippi were nothing more than an act of desperation and attempted intimidation,” it said the statement concludes. “We encourage others who may have been victimized to reach out to us as no survivor should suffer in silence.”