Kenny Chesney Keeps Fans ‘Young’ During Tough Times

When the sun goes down on his Sun City Carnival tour in Indianapolis this month, Kenny Chesney will have notched his seventh consecutive year of selling over one million tickets. Even during these tough economic times, Kenny's drawing power has remained at peak, with no signs of waning, as country music's biggest ticket seller.

"People are having as good a time as always ... it's almost as if they're more appreciative that you're there," Kenny tells Billboard, when asked what the mood of his audiences has been this past year. "We all know, if you watch enough TV, there are a lot of problems in the world, period. I tell the crowd every night that for at least a couple of hours, we don't have to worry about solving them. And that's about the loudest it gets all night. They don't want to think about it, they don't want to watch CNN, they don't want to hear about health care. They want to play, have fun. That's what I've seen from my perspective."

And before the sun sets on each of his shows, there's always one song Kenny won't leave the stage without playing for the fans. "I feel like it wouldn't be a night if we didn't play 'Young' -- we play that every night. I feel like 'Young' was the song that kind of changed my life, even though I'd been around a few years. That's the song that brings people down to the sandpit...and it's the song I look forward to doing every night. It takes the show to a different level."

And Kenny's career could reach another level this fall. Should he win CMA Entertainer of the Year -- for the fifth time -- he would be the all-time champ in that category!