- 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.
