Garth Brooks and TuneIn have ended their three-year SEVENS Radio Network partnership, removing two artist-led Internet stations and separating Brooks from a third following TuneIn’s acquisition by Stingray Group.
The Garth Channel and Tailgate Radio signed off on September 22. The BIG 615 will remain available through TuneIn until the end of 2026, but it will no longer be affiliated with Brooks or the SEVENS Radio Network.
Brooks thanked TuneIn and Stingray for the transition and said additional radio and multimedia initiatives will be announced in the coming months. No destination, timetable or distribution partner for the new venture has been identified.
The first visible programming change after the sale
Brooks and TuneIn launched their partnership in 2023 after the artist ended a six-year run of The Garth Channel on SiriusXM. The BIG 615 became the first SEVENS station, followed by Tailgate Radio and a revived version of The Garth Channel.
Stingray completed its acquisition of TuneIn on December 19, 2025. The transaction carried total consideration of as much as $175 million, including $150 million paid at closing and a possible additional $25 million payment.
At the time, Stingray said TuneIn reached more than 75 million active listeners each month, carried more than 100,000 radio stations and distributed programming through more than 200 platforms and connected devices.
A warning about platform dependence
The separation demonstrates a risk faced by Internet broadcasters and creator-led networks that depend heavily on a large distribution platform. When platform ownership, strategy or economics change, a station may lose its distribution relationship even if its programming and brand remain viable.
The unanswered questions extend beyond the three station brands. Neither company has disclosed what will happen to SEVENS personnel, who controls listener information accumulated during the partnership or whether Brooks can communicate directly with those listeners when his next venture launches.
Independent operators negotiating with aggregators should pay close attention to provisions governing audience data, station names, archives, termination notice, stream portability and the ability to redirect followers when an agreement ends.
The timing links the separation to the period following Stingray’s acquisition, but neither Brooks nor TuneIn has disclosed the contractual or financial reason for ending the relationship. The available evidence does not establish that Stingray forced Brooks or SEVENS off the platform.
Sources: Radio Ink, Billboard and Stingray’s acquisition announcement.