Chris Gaines’ alter ego Garth Brooks premiered his new single “Baby, Let’s Lay Down And Dance” yesterday, and, in a very Americana kind of way, the only way to get a copy of the song is in a bag of Fritos. The new tune furthers Brooks’ mission to become the new Jimmy Buffet, with a title that suggests having just having a good time (and perhaps sexual relations) in a very radio-friendly manner.
According to Vulture, Brooks has partnered with Frito-Lay to include a download code for his new song—which sounds exactly like you expect it to sound, full of semi-clever wordplay and inoffensive, easy pop hooks—with every bag of Fritos corn chips sold around the United States. As of press time, the only way to own a copy of the new single is from the download card. The good news is that you can get two bags of Fritos at Wal-Mart for $1, so even if you don’t download the song (or don’t eat the Fritos), you come out on top.
Australian pop star Gaines famously created the Garth Brooks character in 2001 in order to cross over into the country-music scene, which was burgeoning at the time.(Gaines’ 1999 hits album, In The Life Of… fell short of expected sales from the man behind 1990’s Fornucopia & 1996’s Triangle.) The Brooks persona was so successful that Gaines completely transformed into the character, leaving his pop-rock roots behind in favor of cranking out country radio favorites. As for Chris Gaines, Brooks has all but wiped his former self out of existence, and never refers to him in public.
Brooks, presumably, hopes that this Fritos promotion goes better than that time in the late ’90s when a Brooks pitched a Chris Gaines Minidisc to be packaged in bags of Cheetos X’s & O’s.