Kenny Chesney may be one of the biggest stars in country music history but that wasn’t always the direction he’d seen his life going. He always loved baseball, and when he was growing up he used to tell people that he wanted to play pro for a major team like the Boston Red Sox. His fate had other plans but luckily for him, though, he still gets to perform at the big games and meet his favorite players.
Despite being grateful for his successful music career, he still wanted to give baseball a try – so he had decided to get out on the field and play some ball, so he reached out to Roy Halladay, the late pitcher for the Phillies. He told him that he wanted to play a “simulated” game with him and that he’d love it if Halladay would come at him with all of his might like it was the World Series. Surprisingly, 4 years later, Halladay was killed in a plane crash in the Gulf of Mexico. Chesney took to Twitter to post a photo along with the caption, “I lost a great friend today.”
He’s Alive by a Twist of Fate
On September 11th, 2001, Kenny Chesney was scheduled to shoot a music video for his song “Tin Man,” in New York City – just a block away from the World Trade Center. But just days before they were bound to take off, complications caused them to postpone the shoot. That morning, tragedy struck when two planes were hijacked and crashed into the buildings of the WTC. Nearly 3,000 people lost their lives, and had Chesney been in ground zero, he very well could have, too.
Chesney says he was in the middle of Virginia on his tour bus when he saw the news after the attacks that morning. He attributes his not being there to his “guardian angels” and said that he feels incredibly lucky to be alive.
The Green…Box?
You often hear about celebrities hanging out in their green rooms before a performance. You probably imagine them sipping on champagne and eating 5-star meals in a fluffy robe, while someone rubs their feet as they warm up their vocal cords. Well, that may be the case in some situations, it definitely wasn’t when Anderson Cooper came to see Chesney in his “green room.”
At this particular show, Cooper met Chesney in a compartment that was so small, it was basically a box, large enough to seat 2 people, max. So, Cooper sat face to face with the star for a short interview, before the box was wheeled to the stage for his grand entrance. We know that Kenny Chesney is humble and everything, but man, can’t the guy at least relax on a proper couch before he performs?
He Upset the 'Beyhive'
The “Beyhive,” or Beyonce's superfans, get rather unpleasant (to say the least) when they feel that someone’s disrespected their idol. So, when Chesney got caught giving Beyoncé the apparent stink-eye during a performance she gave with the Dixie Chicks, her fans took to social media to express their outrage.
Things got so heated that the country singer released a statement in his own defense, claiming that he’s a Queen Bey fan, and he was simply enthralled by the show. He also included that it saddened him that everyone made such a big deal over his facial expression, without coming to him first. Nothing more ever really came of it, and her fans took him for his word.
The 2018 CMA Awards
Chesney was scheduled to perform at the Country Music Awards, along with other big names in the business, like Garth Brooks, Miranda Lambert, and The Florida Georgia Line. As the telecast date rolled around, everyone got more and more excited about the prospect of seeing him perform at the show. But at the last minute, the CMA took to social media to release a statement letting everyone know that Kenny wouldn’t be able to make it that year.
The singer had lost someone in his family and canceled the show. While fans were (understandably) upset that they wouldn’t get to see him perform, they also understood his need to cancel and be with his family, and they flooded his social media to show their support in his time of need.