Kenny Chesney photo courtesy of Sony Music Nashville.

Kenny Chesney said goodbye to fans last Saturday on the last night of his Sun City Carnival Tour as he takes some time off to rejuvenate and record another CD, due late spring, 2010.

“It’s hard to believe we’re putting this thing up on blocks,” Kenny said after the sold-out show at Lucas Oil Stadium. “The response from the fans, out in the crowd and the Internet, it makes [me] feel like people understand, and that they know we’re not gone for good, it’s just a breather.

“And I hope people understand, I’ve never been an all or nothing kind of guy,” he stated. “This doesn’t mean there will be no shows or no music. It means I’m not going to be staging a major tour – I’m not going to take two weeks off and be meeting with people to build a stage, to start thinking about how we can do the lights different and what the video’s gonna be.”

Kenny ended his tour surrounded by fans and fellow artists. Sugarland‘s Jennifer Nettles joined him on his hit “When The Sun Goes Down,” Miranda Lambert came out on “She Thinks My Tractor’s Sexy,” the Zac Brown Band performed Alabama‘s “Dixieland Delight” and Steve Miller’s “Space Cowboy,” and Wailer Drummie Zeb did the reggae classic, “Three Little Birds.”

“This isn’t just a show,” said Kenny, who’s the 4-consecutive Academy of Country Music and 4-time and current Country Music Association Entertainer of the Year. “This is a major production … and it’s not just, ‘Decide what to play, rehearse for a couple weeks and get out there.’ I need a break from that, so I can get back inside from a fresh place – and I’m really looking forward to that, because I don’t know anyone who keeps their foot on the gas like this for 8 years.”

Kenny’s break won’t be all flip flops and island sunning. Next year he’ll be part of the Hard Rock Café’s international Ambassadors of Rock, and currently, his “This Is Our Moment” is the break-out song for ESPN’s college football games this season.

“There are all kinds of things to explore within the music,” Kenny said. “I can’t wait to take the time to see where some of this will take me, and where I might turn up, Because, you know, I now have the time to maybe get into some interesting places. We’ll just have to figure it out.”

ShareThis