Megan Moroney is taking plenty of notes from Kenny Chesney this summer. The 26-year-old earned a coveted spot opening for Chesney on his Sun Goes Down Tour, where she is not only watching what he does on stage, but how he conducts himself off the stage as well.

“I literally watch his whole show every night— side stage— trying to learn from him,’ Moroney tells People. “From everything he does on the stage to interacting with his fans, I’m trying to take note of every move he makes.”

“Even off stage, the routine that [Kenny] sticks to? He hasn’t drank this entire tour and he does ice baths and he has a very strict diet,” she continues. “I’ve just been trying to absorb all of his knowledge because he obviously has so much of it.”

Opening for Chesney has given Moroney plenty of opportunities she wouldn’t have otherwise had at this point in her career, including playing sold-out stadiums, such as the AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

“It was his eighth time playing and selling out that stadium! I’m like, ‘That is insane. I need to learn everything I can,'” Moroney reflects. “I think sometimes the openers will just go to their bus because you’re obviously tired, but I’m like, ‘No, we’re standing side stage and we’re taking notes because he is a legend.’”

Moroney not only gets to open for Chesney night after night, but she also gets to perform with him, and get to know him as more than an icon as well.

“When I go on stage with Kenny Chesney in a stadium and I sing with him? I grew up listening to him,” Moroney says. “And we sing ‘You and Tequila’ and ‘All the Pretty Girls’ together every night and those moments still surprise me every week. Or I’ll be side stage and I literally turn around and I’m like, ‘Holy crap, that’s Kenny Chesney.’ And I’m literally friends with him.”

Moroney has made great strides in her career in the last couple of years, ever since “Tennessee Orange” came out in 2022. Since then, Moroney released her debut Lucky album in 2023, followed by her sophomore Am I Okay? record, which was just released. Even Moroney sometimes has a hard time wrapping her head around all that is happening to her at this point in her career.

“This version of Megan has way less days off. I thought that last year’s Megan was busy, and now it’s like my whole entire life is planned out until 2026,” Moroney maintains. “I feel like everything has been taken up a notch.”

A lot has happened to Moroney since Lucky came out, lessons and life changes that are evident on Am I Okay?.

“Going into making this record, I was getting a lot of outside opinions on what my second album should be,” Moroney says. “After a while I realized I just needed to stay true to how I started writing songs when I was 19, and then focus on making music that sonically supports the stories I’m telling. I did my best to block out all that outside noise, and just lead with honesty the whole way through.”

Moroney wrote or co-wrote all 14 songs on Am I Okay?, penning two of them by herself. Find the record, and all of Moroney’s music and upcoming shows, at MeganMoroney.com.

Am I Okay? Track List:

1. “Am I Okay?” (Megan Moroney, Luke Laird, Jessie Jo Dillon)
2. “Third Time’s the Charm” (Megan Moroney)
3. “No Caller ID” (Megan Moroney, Jessi Alexander, Connie Harrington, Jessie Jo Dillon)
4. “Man on the Moon” (Megan Moroney, Ashley Gorley, Casey Smith, David “Messy” Mescon)
5. “28th of June” (Megan Moroney, Ben Williams, Mackenzie Carpenter, Micah Carpenter)
6. “Indifferent” (Megan Moroney, Ben Williams, Mackenzie Carpenter, Micah Carpenter)
7. “Noah” (Megan Moroney, Jessi Alexander, Connie Harrington, Jessie Jo Dillon)
8. “Miss Universe” (Megan Moroney, Liz Rose, AJ Pruis)
9. “Mama I Lied” (Megan Moroney, Ben Williams, David “Messy” Mescon, Rob Hatch)
10. “I Know You” (Megan Moroney, Ben Williams, David “Messy” Mescon, Jacob Kasher Hindlin)
11. “The Girls” (Megan Moroney, Ben Williams, Mackenzie Carpenter, Micah Carpenter)
12. “Heaven By Noon” (Megan Moroney, Jessie Jo Dillon, Matt Jenkins)
13. “Hope You’re Happy” (Megan Moroney, Luke Laird, Shane McAnally)
14. “Hell of a Show” (Megan Moroney)