Garth Brooks surprised millions of country fans when he announced last week, during a virtual press conference, that he was removing his name from the Entertainer of the Year category, which he has won for a total of seven years. While he will still be able to be nominated in other categories, the Oklahoma native says that it was the best decision for him, and his career.

“I really feel like the walls have come down. Now the real entertaining and the real big thing to me is getting ready to happen I just feel freedom,” Garth shared during his weekly Inside Studio G Facebook series. “Now you just feel like whatever you choose is up to you. That’s a fun thing. I don’t know why i didn’t feel that before, but it’s cool.”

While Garth did say that he made the decision in part to make room for other artists to be nominated, he insists the biggest motivator was himself.

“I’m the most selfish guy on the planet,” Garth maintained. “I’m gonna always do what’s best for me. This was for me. This was for me saying, ‘It’s somebody else’s turn.’ I wanna see their face, I just want to hear their joy and their laughter. And then they have a year of that, that power and that compression, and that pressure of being the Entertainer of the Year. And what it does, is it turns that chunk of coal into a diamond, and it just keeps working ’em and working ’em. They need to feel this. We’ve been lucky enough to feel that. I feel very good about this decision.”

Garth may be removing his name from the Entertainer of the Year category, but he is still moving full-speed ahead with his career, and maybe even more now.

“It’s almost like you get to run a little faster and freer now, because now there are no rules whatsoever you have to follow,” he explained. “So now the shows should go to that level of just total euphoric for me. I gotta say, right now, just picking up my guitar and playing is euphoric for me. I miss it so much.”

Garth planned on being on his Stadium Tour this year, with many of the dates moved to 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic. But as soon as concerts resume again, the 58-year-old vows he will be back, better than ever.

“If the green flag drops at anytime after this coronavirus, and hopefully it is managed, then hopefully what we’ve got waiting in front of us, with the make-up dates and the ones we scheduled anyway, this could be the biggest year of our life coming up in ’21,” Garth hinted. “And ’22, we announced the summer of ’22 will be the culmination of all of the Stadium Tour all come together.”