Kenny Chesney will release his 19th studio album, Here and Now, on May 1st, 2020. The country-star says he drew from many inspirations around him with the goal of elevating listeners and covering a spectrum of emotions including celebrating the road life and appreciating life's sweet moments.
“When you’re this far into a career, I think artists need to keep pushing themselves and the music without losing sight of who they are, or forgetting the people you make music for,” says Chesney. “No Shoes Nation is a very passionate place without borders. I get inspired every time I see and hear them. These are passionate people who work really hard. They make a difference in their community in all kinds of ways, giving back not so people think they’re good, but because that’s who they are and what they do. When they listen to music, they’re all in—and when they hear something they like, you can feel it in how they respond.”
Buddy Cannon co-produced the album, a longtime collaborator of Kenny Chesney's along with additional production assistance from Ross Copperman. The project took a year and a half to complete.
“You know, [the album is] going to have a high fun factor,” says Kenny. “People work hard, and need music that makes them smile, that kicks them into a happy place. There are also songs here that look at very specific people, that tell one person’s story, but it could be any of us. That’s the mark of a good song: let one person’s specific life say so much about a lot of people’s lives. And one of the things I really wanted (forHere and Now) was to bring a lot of my favorite writers together, not to do ‘writing camp,’ but just hang out and talk, remember when it was the stories and laughs that sparked songs, not sitting down to churn out something to cut.”
The title track of the album has already been released and placed in the top 30 on Billboard's Country Airplay chart after two weeks. Chesney will be playing the album this summer on the Chillaxification Tour with Florida Georgia Line, Old Dominion and Michael Franti & Spearhead, beginning on April 18 at the AT&T Stadium in Dallas, Texas. Check out his title track song, Here and Now below along with his tour video for this summer!