Kenny Chesney just beat his own record, and it happened in the country music capital. The East Tennessee native brought his Sun Goes Down Tour to Nissan Stadium in Nashville, playing before an astonishing 57,523 people, surpassing his previous attendance record in the large venue by 300 people.
“Nashville’s known for the quality of its creative people,” Chesney says. “And when you hit that stage, you’re playing for people who know what it means to pour life into songs, to play as if your life depended on it. When you’re playing for people like that, you really want to give it all away.”
Chesney was joined for the show by his regular openers Megan Moroney and Uncle Kracker, plus surprise guests Old Dominion, as Chesney filled two hours of music, with songs like “Save It For A Rainy Day,” “No Shoes, No Shirt, No Problem,” “Get Along,” his current “Just To Say We Did” single and more.
“Memories are made in moments like our show,” Chesney says. “You can’t always know what it is, just that people live their lives inside these songs – and when No Shoes Nation comes together with purpose, shows turn into their own kind of momentum. Just hearing people sing back on so many of the songs was reason to push even harder. I’m lucky I have a band up to the task.”
Chesney is by now a seasoned performer, having spent the last 25-plus years headlining his own shows. It’s his decades of experience, not to mention an enduring reign as one of the biggest country music superstars of all time, which make his live shows so unforgettable.
“One of the things I’m very proud of on the road is that we’ve got a — I’m very thankful for this –is that we’ve got a catalog of music that spans over a lot of years,” the 56-year-old boasts. “We’re able to be in the moment, take songs out of the set or add them into the set. I have this thing called a 911 mic where I can hit a button, and I can do an audible in the middle of the previous song. And say, ‘Hey, we’re gonna skip this next song, and we’re gonna put another song in.’”
“Just To Say We Did” comes after Chesney celebrated his 33rd No. 1 hit with “Take Her Home.” Both songs are from his latest BORN album, released in March. It was partly the fans he encountered on his Sun Goes Down Tour that made him decide to release “Just To Say We Did” as a single.
“Everywhere we went, everyone was asking for the same song,” Chesney says. “Everybody wanted us to release ‘Just To Say We Did.’ It was insane how almost unanimous it was, but it’s also pretty much a perfect summer song. I mean, if there’s ever a time when you’re gonna get out of your comfort zone, do something crazy or unthinkable, it’s now.
“And the thing I loved about the song when we were putting BORN together was that idea of ‘shoot your shot!’ Whatever it is, forget the excuses – just do it!” he continues. “Don’t look down, don’t look back! Just jump into the moment and ride it for all it’s worth.”
Chesney’s Sun Goes Down Tour wraps up with three shows at Foxborough Stadium in Massachusetts August 23-25. Find “Just To Say We Did” and all of Chesney’s music and upcoming shows at KennyChesney.com.