The villege of Rosemont paid a hefty price to bring country singer Garth Brooks to Allstate Arena for the launch of his tour in September, records show.
On Monday the village released the financial information surrounding the deal that showed a $1,050,000 "rebate" for the 11 shows he played at the arena, according to the Chicago Tribune. The newspaper asked for a copy of the financial agreement months ago, but village officials fought to keep it a secret until the Illinois attorney general's office ruled that the village was violating state open-records law.
Despite the more than $1 million rebate Brooks received after the show, village officials say they made twice that much money off the concerts, 10 of which sold out.
The records obtained by the Tribune show that Rosemont agreed to pay Brooks $100,000 for each sold-out show and a prorated amount -- $50,000 -- for the shows that did not sell out. The rental price was also discounted.
The kickoff concerts at Allstate Arena were the first shows Brooks had played in 16 years. Brooks had the option to play in a number of cities for the kickoff shows, but in the end he chose Chicago.
"If you want a place, guaranteed to have a great time, you want a place where people who get up and sing at the top of their lungs, Chicago is the place," Brooks told NBC 5 in September.
