Brooks may have been in "retirement" for the last decade or so, but it quickly became apparent that � nearly a quarter-century after he debuted and then dominated the country world with songs like "The Dance," "The Thunder Rolls" and "Friends in Low Places" � he was still among of the hottest properties in country music.

In a curious coincidence, the very same week that Brooks announced his television special, another country star who came to prominence in the 1990s, Tim McGraw, was racking up serious airplay for his then-current single "Southern Girl." So much airplay, in fact, that the song wound up hitting No. 1 the following week.

And McGraw and Brooks weren't the only veteran '90s-era artists continuing to build new audiences and/or find newfound attention in 2013. Joe Diffie, one of the biggest hitmakers of the '90s, had his name chanted over and over again this year, in arenas and stadiums across the U.S., thanks to the Jason Aldean's "1994″ and its famous 'Joe Diffie chorus.' Aldean, a huge Diffie fan, said he fell "out of his chair laughing" when he first heard the song as a demo.

Marty Brown, who released three critically acclaimed country albums during the early 1990s, re-emerged from obscurity to win national attention (and a whole new generation of fans) on the NBC reality competition America's Got Talent.

Another '90s superstar who recently re-entered the public spotlight is Shania Twain. Like Brooks before her, she chose to do so via a splashy big-budget Las Vegas show, Still the One, that is currently scheduled through early 2014. She's also said she is planning a new album, which would be her first in a decade.