Warner Music NashvilleEven in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, Kenny Chesney‘s nineteenth studio album, Here and Now, came out May 1 as planned. You can’t say the same, of course, of his Chillaxification Tour, which was supposed to kick off April 18 in Texas.
The fans known as No Shoes Nation wouldn’t be deterred, though. Randall Deavers and his significant other headed to the empty Lot 12 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington to throw a two-person tailgate party, complete with protective gear. Kenny saw their video and shared it, kicking off a #VirtualTailgateParty on social media.
“I couldn’t believe it when I saw that,” Kenny tells ABC Audio. “We were supposed to open our tour at the Dallas Cowboys’ football stadium. And there were some fans — obviously we didn’t get to go — but there are some fans that still went and tailgated as if they were going to the show that night, because they missed it so much.”
“It just made me feel incredible,” he continues. “It made me miss it, and it made me feel disappointed all at the same time that we weren’t able to be there.”
Just like practically every other musician on the planet, Kenny’s anxious for the day he can get back to work.
“We’re cautiously optimistic,” he reflects. “You know, that’s what I would tell those fans that went out there and tailgated in an empty parking lot is that we’re optimistic that we’re gonna play music soon.”
“And we don’t know when that is,” Kenny adds, “but it will be soon. We’ve just got our fingers crossed that it’s sooner than later.”
As of now, Kenny’s dates have been postponed through May 28, with the hope he might be able to resume May 30 at Pittsburgh’s Heinz Field.
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