PEOPLE
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Country music superstar Garth Brooks has more than just friends in low places. The Library of Congress said Wednesday the Grammy winner will receive the Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song in March 2020.
Previous recipients include Tony Bennett, Paul Simon, Carole King and Willie Nelson.
Brooks is a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame. His hits include “Friends in Low Places,” “The Thunder Rolls” and “The Dance.”
At 57, he'll be the youngest recipient of the Gershwin Prize. He will be honored with an all-star tribute concert in Washington, D.C., that will air on PBS stations in the spring.
“An award is only as good as the names on it,” Brooks said in a statement. “First off, for any musician, the name Gershwin says it all. Add to Ira's and George's names the names of the past recipients and you have an award of the highest honor. I am truly humbled.”
Since his debut in 1989, Brooks has become a top-selling and touring musical force, bringing his brand of high energy and emotional country music to stadiums and arenas.
He is the best-selling solo artist in the United States with more than 148 million in album sales, according to the Recording Industry Association of America, and is second only in total U.S. sales to The Beatles.
Brooks is married to fellow country star Trisha Yearwood.
SAN FRANCISCO — Opera star Plácido Domingo has resigned as general director of the Los Angeles Opera following multiple allegations of sexual harassment reported by The Associated Press.In a statement Wednesday, Domingo said the allegations have “created an atmosphere in which my ability to serve this company that I so love has been compromised.”The company's board of directors said in a separate statement that he performed more than 300 times in 31 different roles.He has served as general director since 2003.
NEW YORK — Jim Carrey has set his wild sights on the literary world.The actor has written a novel called “Memoirs and Misinformation,” Alfred A. Knopf announced Wednesday. Along with co-author Dana Vachon, Carrey will take on celebrity, acting, romance and some other subjects he's familiar with. The publisher is calling the book a “fearless and semi-autobiographical deconstruction of persona.”“Memoirs and Misinformation” is scheduled for publication in May. Carrey, who plans a promotional tour, is offering a semi-disclaimer: “None of this is real and all of it is true.”Carrey, 57, is known for films such as “Dumb and Dumber” and “Man on the Moon.” He's not the first actor in recent years to turn to fiction writing. Others include Tom Hanks, Sean Penn and Ethan Hawke.
