Garth Brooks

Garth Brooks ushered in a new era of country music, taking it from its down-home audience and into arenas where it not only competed with rock & roll, it often eclipsed it in popularity.

Though he was grounded in traditional country, he was equally rooted in classic rock, resulting in a broad, powerful sound that roped in fans otherwise uninterested in country.

Before Brooks, it was inconceivable for a country artist to go multi-platinum; he shattered that barrier in 1991 with his second album, No Fences, and its follow-up, Ropin' the Wind, the first country album to debut at the top of the pop charts.