Garth Brooks has responded to the lawsuit that accused him of rape.
In a statement sent late Thursday to CNN and other outlets, Brooks denies the sexual assault allegations, saying, "I trust the system, I do not fear the truth, and I am not the man they have painted me to be."
In a lawsuit filed on Thursday, an anonymous accuser claims Brooks raped her during a May 2019 stay in a Los Angeles hotel.
The woman claims Brooks sexually assaulted her while she worked for him as a hairstylist and makeup artist starting in 2017, after working for his wife, fellow country star Trisha Yearwood, since 1999.
In the lawsuit, the accuser says Brooks raped her and also exposed her to "other appalling sexual conduct" during that same year.
"For the last two months, I have been hassled to no end with threats, lies, and tragic tales of what my future would be if I did not write a check for many millions of dollars," Brooks declared in his defence.
"It has been like having a loaded gun waved in my face. Hush money, no matter how much or how little, is still hush money. In my mind, that means I am admitting to behaviour I am incapable of - ugly acts no human should ever do to another. We filed suit against this person nearly a month ago to speak out against extortion and defamation of character.
"I want to play music tonight," Brooks concluded, referencing his Las Vegas residency at Caesars Palace. "I want to continue our good deeds going forward. It breaks my heart these wonderful things are in question now."
