Garth Brooks lawsuit forces major change for KC concert fans

Garth Brooks returns to T-Mobile Center in Kansas City this weekend for two concerts — but the visit comes with a legal cloud that just got a lot more complicated.

A federal appeals court ruled Wednesday that the woman accusing Brooks of sexual assault can potentially keep her name hidden from the public.

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit overturned a trial judge’s earlier decision that had forced Jane Roe to use her real name in the lawsuit.

That lower judge had argued the “cat was out of the bag” after Brooks publicly disclosed her name in court filings and she accidentally included it in another document.

The appeals court disagreed.

“We are not persuaded that the proverbial cat is out of the bag here,” the panel wrote in its ruling obtained by Billboard.

“Internet sleuths might speculate that Roe is a particular person,” the court continued, “but that is not the same as a public broadcasting of Roe’s certain identity.”

The ruling gives Roe a chance to proceed under a pseudonym, shielding her identity from widespread exposure.

Neither side’s attorneys immediately returned requests for comment on Thursday.

The accuser first filed her claims against Brooks in Los Angeles court in October 2024.

She accused him of exposing her to “appalling sexual conduct,” including an alleged rape during a May 2019 stay in a Los Angeles hotel room while she worked for him as a hairstylist.

Brooks has vehemently denied the allegations, calling them “lies” aimed at forcing him to pay “hush money.”

Weeks before that case was filed, Brooks had quietly filed his own preemptive lawsuit in Mississippi federal court under a John Doe pseudonym.

That suit accused an unnamed Jane Roe of extorting him with threats of a public lawsuit.

After she filed her case in Los Angeles, Brooks refiled his own lawsuit with her real name listed.

The move quickly sparked outrage from the accuser’s attorneys, who immediately moved to reseal her name and seek legal penalties against Brooks.

They also asked the media not to disclose the name, and Billboard abided by that request.

Last year, the judge overseeing the federal case in Mississippi ruled that Roe was not entitled to proceed under a pseudonym.

He cited the fact that her name had already been disclosed, both by Brooks and in an inadvertent filing in the California case.

Wednesday’s appeals decision reverses that ruling and sends the case back to the lower court for further proceedings.

Meanwhile, Brooks is playing two shows at T-Mobile Center instead of the originally planned three.

He canceled a Saturday matinee after bots bought up all the tickets.

If you see anyone selling tickets for that canceled show, they are no longer valid.

The two remaining concerts take place Friday, November 6 and Saturday, November 7.

Both shows start at 8 p.m.

Doors to T-Mobile Center open at 6:30 p.m.

There is no opening act joining him on tour.

Tickets for remaining seats on either day cost $155, no matter where you sit.

Brooks performs in the round, meaning anyone can see him on the stage regardless of where they’re seated.

The seating chart shows that the 360-degree stage is located on one end of the venue’s floors without a backdrop that would otherwise block seats.

Limited tickets remain on the floor, in the lower and upper levels for both nights.

Tickets for Friday can be purchased online on AXS, and Saturday tickets can also be purchased on AXS.

All tickets are mobile-only.

There are no paper tickets for these concerts like there were for the majority of previous Garth Brooks concerts.

T-Mobile Center is all digital.

Have your tickets pulled up on your phone before you arrive at an entrance.

If you wait until you reach the door you’ll hold up the security line.

The venue does not have a clear bag policy, but it encourages fans to pack lightly.

Your bag should not be larger than 12-by-6-by-12 inches.

Don’t bring backpacks or chain wallets.

Backpacks are not allowed inside at this concert, even if they are small ones.

Other prohibited items include artificial noisemakers, beach balls and balloons, cameras with detachable lenses, coolers and containers, laptops and tablet computers, outside food and beverages, pocket knives, selfie sticks, spurs, umbrellas with spike-like points, and any type of weapon, fake weapon or object resembling a weapon.

T-Mobile Center is cashless.

That means anything you want to buy needs to be put on a card.