![]() ![]() When he finally made it big, Chesney decided to celebrate success the best way he knew how. "I was smart enough to record that song but I was smart enough also not to record another one."Īs it turns out, Chesney actually has two tractors but says they are "not one bit" sexy. You know what I mean? But it was a great groove," Chesney remembers. But it was a song that was…there was no gray area with that song. "I knew that a lot of people that grew up just like I did would go crazy over it. The title: "She Thinks My Tractor's Sexy." That is, until he took a chance on a song even he admits is silly. And people would get drunk, though, and pay it," he says.Īfter college, he got a record contract but didn't get noticed much. "Everyone wanna hear 'Free Bird' or 'Buffet!' You know or whatever. But anything by James Taylor, Jimmy Buffet, or especially Free Bird, is $25.' Because I was so sick of hearing it," Chesney remembers. "I had a tip jar and on the front of the tip jar sitting on a stool, it says: 'Tips welcome. But when he got to college at East Tennessee State, he started playing guitar cover songs in the bars around campus. In high school, football and baseball consumed him. The "corporation" was formed in the hill country north of Knoxville, Tenn. "If this is the executive suite, what does it say about the corporation?" Cooper asks, with a reply of laughter. I mean it's almost like, it's therapy for me to come back here and just sit." "For some reason or another, I feel so relaxed back here, and I know. "Back here with propane tanks, ice makers, brooms," he says. In the restaurants and bars, he's a regular.īut oddly, his favorite spot is the back alley of a burger joint. He's now in his third home, and is a fixture with the locals. Virgin Islands his home for several months each year. It has worked so well, Chesney can now afford to call the U.S. Whatever is going on in your world, don't think about it for the next two hours and just have some fun, and let's listen to music.' And yeah, I marketed that. "Īsked how he sells fun, Chesney tells Cooper, "Every night, when I'm on stage, and I do a song called 'No shoes, no shirt, no problems' and every night I told them, I said, 'I know we've all got problems. "And I will admit that I have allowed my love for the tropics to get into my music. There's no doubt about it," Chesney says. And that's as much as a part of your success as the music," Cooper says. You are an invention of marketing in some ways.' That you created this image, created this lifestyle brand around it. And that's one of the reasons why, that's one of the reasons why, that's one of the ways," he says. Even the production office is in a Tiki hut.Īmong the eight busloads of roadies and 17 semi-trucks of equipment Chesney tours with, there's one 18-wheeler full of nothing but Caribbean props. And backstage it's more of the same, there are a couple of fully stocked and well-used bars. Often, he even joins the afternoon tailgating that is part of the Kenny Chesney concert experience. Like Jimmy Buffet, Chesney is selling a beach party lifestyle his fans embrace. And I loved that," he tells Cooper.Ĭhesney also loves the Caribbean and there's an island vibe in much of his music and his videos. And I grew up in a small town, and I grew up in a place where your whole world revolved around friends, family, school, and church, and sports. "It sounds like a cliché, but it…you do sing about what you know about. "Someone said to us about you that you're committed to the dignity of small-town America," Cooper remarks. "I love the fact that I can go out there on stage with a guitar and sing a song that means something to somebody," Chesney says. He sings not about whiskey-soaked heartache but about first love, best friends, milestone moments that make up everyday life in America. His songs are as much classic rock as they are classic country. For the next two hours, he is constantly in motion. When Chesney finally appears, the crowd erupts. "I'm gonna come up and I'm gonna be in the middle of this football stadium. ![]() With a knock as the signal they have arrived, Chesney crawls out of the box and into a cramped waiting room. ![]()
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