It’s been three years since Kenny Chesney released a new record, with Here and Now, which came out in May of 2020. The singer-songwriter released his debut album, In My Wildest Dreams, in 1994, maintaining his role as a country music hitmaker for almost 30 years.

Chesney has already released “Beer With My Friends,” his collaboration with Old Dominion, from his next record, but says he has no idea when the album will be ready, giving himself the luxury of time that he says he now can afford.

“The one thing I can say about it is that it is still in motion,” Chesney told Audacy‘s Katie Neal. “People ask me when it’s going to come out, and the best answer I have honestly is, ‘When I feel like it’s done.’ It’s easy to rush it, and it’s easy to put music out when people think it might be time, but I think I’ve earned the right to get it right. I mean, I love it now, but I want to be in love.”

Chesney is one of the most successful country music artists of all time, but he isn’t willing to take all of the credit for his successes. The 55-year-old says it’s the people he is surrounded by, ones who can speak truth into his life, who deserve much of the credit as well. It’s those people he is relying on as he chooses which songs will make it onto his next project.

“Luckily, I don’t have a lot of ‘yes people’ in my camp,” Chesney said. “And that’s really important. I have a lot of people within my circle, in my camp, that have really good song sense. It starts with my producer Buddy Cannon also. I can’t get anything past him. I’ve been blessed that way. But, honestly, my family in East Tennessee, they are our audience. They really are. I go home for Christmas or Thanksgiving, and they’ll tell me everybody they love, they’ll tell me what they hate. All the new artists, all the songs they love.”

Chesney is currently on his I Go Back Tour, trading football stadiums for smaller arenas to perform his many hits. He is joined on the road by Kelsea Ballerini, who is serving as his opening act for all dates.

“There are going to be some real surprises in the set list,” Chesney hinted ahead of the tour. “A couple songs we’ve not played in a long time… the opportunity to sing our Vocal Event ‘“half of my hometown”’ with Kelsea makes me happy. And a few songs are being left behind. I spent the months off thinking about how we can change things up. I think we’ve got a lot of the songs people want to hear, but we’re adding a couple that nobody sees coming. I can’t wait to see the response.”

Music and tour dates can be found at KennyChesney.com.

Read ‘Kenny Chesney: 11 Things to Know About the Superstar’ here.