LISTEN LIVE

Kenny Chesney’s 2022 Tour Ranked Top Country Tour by Billboard

Kenny Chesney’s “Here And Now 2022 Tour” is Billboard’s No. 1 Country Tour. Like 2018’s last true full-on tour – the 19-stadium, 42-date – “Here And Now” played to 1.3…

Kenny Chesney's 2022 Tour Ranked Top Tour By Billboard
Catherine Powell/Getty Images

Kenny Chesney's "Here And Now 2022 Tour" is Billboard's No. 1 Country Tour. Like 2018's last true full-on tour – the 19-stadium, 42-date – "Here And Now" played to 1.3 million fans, making him the top country touring act in the nation.

Kenny said in a press release, "You don't think about this stuff, just the way it feels to be back out there with the fans! As good as No Shoes Nation is, and they're the best, this year, they took that heart and passion and brought it up six levels. Suddenly, me and my team were looking for ways to open up seats, move the stage back, create cleaner sight lines, so we could get every single person who wanted to be there into the venues."

He added, "It's a crazy thing to play a show when you're backed up to the edge of the back end of the end zone, but you have this blast of energy coming from the people, hitting that, mixing with the band and that massive sound system and creating a whole other thing that we're trying to throw back out to them. It was, in a word, insane!"

Chesney's longtime manager Clint Higham told Billboard for "The Year In Touring Issue" out this week, "The people of No Shoes Nation are such intense fans, the being together after four years created its own energy and momentum. We found ourselves adding seats in so many markets trying to meet the demand because whether it was the people who'd held their tickets for over 1,000 days in many cases or the people buying those new tickets who felt the buzz and wanted to be there, it was a whole new level of demand based on what Kenny gives people."

With his just-announced "I Go Back 2023 Tour" almost sold out, the power of the musician from East Tennessee's relationship with No Shoes Nation may be stronger than ever. He offered, "When we hit pause on our 2020 tour, I never thought we would go much past the fall, let alone into 2021. The idea it would be 2022? That it would be four years was unthinkable. Yet, here we are, and it feels better than it ever has. So, for everyone who came out and helped make this Country's No. 1 tour, this is all about you and how much we love you and what you bring us every time we set up and play where you are."

Today (2/20), Kenny Chesney releases his brand new single "Here And Now" to country radio and what a great reason to celebrate him in pictures. Let's take a look at the four-time CMA Entertainer of the Year  Kenny in the last couple of years.

621323996.jpgRick Diamond/Getty Images

Kenny Chesney receives Pinnacle Award during the 50th annual CMA Awards at the Bridgestone Arena on November 2, 2016 in Nashville, Tennessee.


646296814.jpgRick Diamond/Getty Images

Kenny Chesney and George Strait present Tony Martell Lifetime Entertainment Achievement Award to Louis Messina at the T.J. Martell Foundation 9th Annual Nashville Honors Gala at Omni Hotel on February 27, 2017 in Nashville, Tennessee.


675338964.jpgKevin Winter/Getty Images

Kenny Chesney performs on the Toyota Mane Stage during day 3 of 2017 Stagecoach California's Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club on April 30, 2017 in Indio, California.


675339206.jpgKevin Winter/Getty Images

Kenny Chesney performs on the Toyota Mane Stage during day 3 of 2017 Stagecoach California's Country Music Festival at the Empire Polo Club on April 30, 2017 in Indio, California.


946694494.jpgEthan Miller/Getty Images

Kenny Chesney performs onstage during the 53rd Academy of Country Music Awards at MGM Grand Garden Arena on April 15, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada.


947953942.jpgEthan Miller/Getty Images

Kenny Chesney performs during the 53rd Academy of Country Music Awards at MGM Grand Garden Arena on April 15, 2018 in Las Vegas, Nevada.


963063910.jpgParas Griffin/Getty Images

Kenny Chesney performs in concert during "Trip Around The Sun" tour at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on May 26, 2018 in Atlanta, Georgia.


968569906.jpgLeigh Vogel/Getty Images

Kenny Chesney performs "This Land is Your Land" during a Remembrance and Celebration of the Life & Enduring Legacy of Robert F. Kennedy at Arlington National Cemetery on June 6, 2018 in Arlington, Virginia.


1035935020.jpgJason Kempin/Getty Images

Matthew Ramsey of Old Dominion and Kenny Chesney perform at the Ryman Auditorium on September 18, 2018 in Nashville, Tennessee.


1035799958.jpgJason Kempin/Getty Images

Matthew Ramsey of Old Dominion and Kenny Chesney perform at the Ryman Auditorium on September 18, 2018 in Nashville, Tennessee.

Nancy Brooks has been working in the country music industry for almost 30 years. She has interviewed pretty much any country star you can think of. In the late 1990s, she started working with Dolly Parton. And yes, Nancy reports that Parton is as sweet as you would think. She loves her life in country music and has been backstage at every CMA Awards show since the late 1990s. Many of her stories are from her one-on-one interviews. She was there at the beginning of the incredible careers of many music superstars today, including Taylor Swift, Shania Twain, and Blake Shelton, and has interviewed them multiple times throughout the years.