Garth Brooks was joined by a young fan to perform a duet of one of his hit songs on Saturday (April 16) during his second consecutive night at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee. After spotting a young fan in the…
Garth Brooks and 7-year-old fan Charles; Photo Courtesy of Brian Mansfield
Garth Brooks was joined by a young fan to perform a duet of one of his hit songs on Saturday (April 16) during his second consecutive night at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee.
After spotting a young fan in the front row, wearing a black cowboy hat and holding a sign that read “my first concert ever,” Brooks wanted to make his first concert one he’ll always remember. The sign also listed Brooks’ song, “Standing Outside The Fire,” which is a favorite song of his that he wanted to hear him perform, however, instead of just hearing the song live, Charles got to sing the song with him. Brooks then signed the young boy’s sign and invited him to join him for a duet.
“Can you sing, by any chance?” Brooks asked the 7-year-old country music fan from Tennessee, whose name was Charles Engel.
Charles then nodded and took the microphone that Brooks handed him to join him for a unforgettable duet after Charles told Brooks that he had been practicing the tune all week.
“Alright Charles, I’m going to put this in your hand, you’re going to be a real big time singer okay? You already got the look, you look fantastic, but what you need is the sweetest crowd in the world [to start chanting your name],” Brooks said.
The country superstar, standing on the stage, and the 7-year-old boy, standing in the front row of the audience, then performed Brooks’ fan-favorite hit, “Standing Outside The Fire.”
After the capacity crowd began chanting Charles’ name, Brooks and the young fan began to sing the song together. The young Brooks’ fan confidently belted out the lyrics with Brooks and gave the performance everything he had.
“Charles, you’re a rock star!” Brooks declared as they concluded their performance together.
Click above to watch Brooks and Charles’ performance together in Nashville.
Co-written by Brooks alongside Jenny Yates, “Standing Outside The Fire” was released in December 1993 as the third single from Brooks’ fifth studio album, In Pieces. The song also appears on several other Brooks’ projects, including The Hits, The Limited Series, Double Live, and The Ultimate Hits.
“I was in Los Angeles in 1992, hanging out with a good friend, Jenny Yates. In a conversation I was describing something that I thought was really close, but for me, it just stood outside the fire,” Brooks previously said of the tune in the liner notes of his album, The Hits. “There was that brilliant moment of silence when we just looked at each other and smiled, Within an hour and half, this song was written. This is another song of inspiration, and Jenny is that way when it comes to inspiration. I don’t know if I have ever met a bigger dreamer than Jenny – to the one who saw the vision and made it happen – my hats off to Jenny Yates.”
During the Nissan Stadium concert on Saturday (April 16), Brooks also welcomed the Grand Ole Opry to open the show. Chris Young, Trisha Yearwood, Jeannie Seely, Chase Rice, Lauren Alaina, and more performed as part of the Opry opening act.
Brooks also joined Chris Young during his performance to sing a duet of “Papa Loved Mama,” a moment Young dubbed a highlight of his career.
Additionally, Brooks recently revealed that he is opening a bar on Lower Broadway in Downtown Nashville called Friends In Low Places.
